Forgettable Vows
by twin-v
Summary: Draco and Hermione wake up together in bed one morning with headaches, no clothes, and horror when they see each other. But it seems there is so much more to it than inebriation... four years' worth of wedded bliss, in fact.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Harry Potter and all things related to his universe belong to JK Rowling, not us.

**Authors' notes:** This was written for the Hermione Big Bang, in celebration of Hermione's 30th birthday. :D Happy birthday, Hermione! We thought we'd tackle a cliché with a twist. It's our longest fic yet, and as it's finished, we'll be uploading it chapter by chapter but hopefully pretty quickly. Many thanks to our beta, lucillajoanna.

**Chapter 1 **

The pale sun was already high up in the sky by the time Hermione Granger opened her eyes. Her head was pounding- how much had she had to drink last night? And in Merlin's name, _why_? She couldn't even remember.

Moving slightly, she realized that the bed she was in wasn't her bed. It was the most comfortable bed she'd ever been in, yes, but it wasn't _her_ bed. Where was she?

Resolutely ignoring the ache in her head, Hermione sat up and looked around. The room, large and beautiful, was slightly familiar, although she couldn't place it. She supposed one of her friends had taken her home from wherever they had been partying and had given her a room to stay in, since Hermione had obviously been too drunk to do it herself.

She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to get out the worst of the tangles. That was when she realized that she was naked. Completely, utterly naked.

Hermione groaned and buried her head in her hands. She was never touching alcohol again. She had never been too fond of it, and usually stopped when she knew she was getting tipsy. So when, in the name of all things Gryffindor, had she decided to get completely wasted and remove all her clothes?

A sound from the far end of the bed- the bed was _massive_- recalled Hermione to her senses and she whimpered in shock and mortification as she clutched a blanket to her bare chest. What had she _done_?

The man groaned again, and Hermione stared at him uncertainly. The blanket was drawn up to his shoulders and he had a pillow over his head, blocking out the morning light. Hermione had no idea who he was, and wasn't sure if she wanted to find out.

Merlin, she couldn't think properly. Maybe she could sneak out while he was sleeping… Hermione wrapped a blanket around herself and stepped out of the bed, picking up the scattered pieces of her clothing, and her wand. It was foolish to hope that she _hadn't_ done anything the night before- her current state of undress and the soreness of her body spoke otherwise. Her heart fell as she realized this- she had meant to wait until her wedding night to give herself to the love of her life, and after a night of drinking that plan had been carelessly tossed out the window. Hermione was quite sure that the man lying a few feet away from her wasn't the love of her life, and the worst part was that she couldn't even _remember_ her first time.

Damn it all to hell, she thought, as she made her way to the bathroom and locked the door. She barely noticed the large, spacious, _luxurious_ bathroom, although her mind dimly registered that her 'lover' (Merlin, she hated that word) was filthy rich. Hermione was too busy staring at the multitude of personal care products, and her eyes widened as she spotted some objects that definitely belonged to a woman. Great, she groaned, wondering if she had just slept with a married man. Choosing not to think about it, Hermione opened a small cabinet and got out a potion that promised to cure hangovers. It tasted awful, but was effective.

Once that was taken care of, she leaned over the sink to splash water on her face. As she did so, she felt something hard scrape her skin.

Blinking water out of her eyes, Hermione looked at her hand and felt her world come to a grinding halt.

"Sweet mother of Merlin," she swore, staring in horror at the wedding ring that adorned her finger. "No. No. _No_."

Hermione sat down on the floor, wincing as her sore muscles hit the tiles. Why couldn't she remember any of it? Her mind was a complete blank. This was so much worse than just sleeping with some random guy, this was a lifetime commitment. Who the hell was the rotten man who had gotten her drunk, seduced her, and then married her? And just after Valentine's Day, no less! Oh, the Daily Prophet would have a field day. And what would her parents say?

This, she thought as she struggled not to cry, was surely worse than being expelled or fired, which meant it was definitely worse than being killed. She wasn't completely sure of the laws regarding wizard marriages- he _must_ be a wizard to have an anti-hangover potion in his bathroom- but she was pretty certain magical divorce or annulment was very hard to do. But then again, if he was already married…

It was worth a try. She charmed herself clean with a few flicks of her wand, and dressed as quickly as her wobbly legs and mildly spinning head would allow.

A sharp knock on the door made her jump. "Anyone in there?"

Hermione gasped, recognizing the voice. "You!" After a quick glance in the mirror, she flung open the door so violently that he took a step back, squinting at her. "Malfoy!"

Draco stared at her in horror. "Granger?"

"This can't be- I can't have-" Hermione stammered, unable to think clearly. With supreme effort, she pulled herself together. "I have to talk to Ginny. I can't be _married_ to _you_!" With a crack, she Disapparated, leaving Draco gaping at thin air. He spotted the ring on his finger and groaned.

Hermione knocked frantically on the door of Grimmauld Place. She had half a mind to scream at her friend for not rescuing her from Malfoy, but decided to hold her tongue. She didn't, after all, remember anything that had happened. For once that morning, fate was on her side, as it was Ginny and not her hot-headed husband who opened the door.

"Hermione, what's wrong?" Ginny asked immediately, alarmed by her friend's frazzled appearance. She stepped aside to let Hermione enter.

"Is Harry up yet?" Hermione wrung her hands in agitation, heading to the living room.

"No, should I call him? Hermione, what's the matter?" Ginny moved in the direction of the stairs, presumably to wake Harry. Hermione grabbed her arm.

"Don't call him- I don't want him to know yet. At least, not until I can sort something out." Since Ginny hadn't asked any questions about Malfoy, Hermione decided that the redhead didn't know anything about Hermione leaving with him the previous night.

"What is it? Why haven't you changed out of your clothes from last night?" Now even Ginny sounded scared.

Hermione gave a forced, shaky laugh as she collapsed on the sofa. "You'll never forgive me, Ginny. How could I be so stupid? I must have been incredibly drunk last night." She held up her hand for Ginny's inspection, the ring glittering prominently on her finger.

"What happened?" Ginny asked, not impressed by the ring at all.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm m-married! To M-malfoy," Hermione stuttered, giving into the tears that had long threatened to come.

Ginny knelt down in front of Hermione. "Hey, calm down, Hermione. I know you two fight, but you always work it out. What is it this time?"

"W-work it out?" Hermione wailed. "I hate him!"

"You don't mean that," the redhead said reassuringly. "What happened last night?"

"I don't remember. I was hoping you knew. I just woke up this morning, and I had this massive hangover, and I was in bed with him, and-" Hermione broke off as her tears began falling faster.

Ginny moved to sit next to her on the sofa. "A hangover?" she asked, before laughing in relief. "So that's all this is. I was worried it was something worse. The way you were talking-"

"No, it's not just a hangover! It's the biggest mistake of my life! Ginny, don't you get it?"

"Have you taken a potion? Are you feeling alright?"

Hermione replied in a quavering voice. "Would you be okay if you woke up married? And to that git! He's already married, isn't he?"

"Okay, I think I need to call Harry." Ginny stood up and slowly backed away, but Hermione grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

"No! Don't you see? If he finds out he'll kill me! There must be some way around this, maybe I could get a time-turner?"

"Hermione, listen to me. No, better yet, listen to yourself! You're talking crazy. Are you sick?" Ginny pressed a hand to Hermione's forehead.

Hermione moved away. "I'm not feverish," she snapped. "I'm telling you, I woke up this morning in a strange bed, next to Draco bloody Malfoy! And there's no denying what we did in said bed last night, this morning I was so sore-"

"Enough!" Ginny held up a hand and looked curiously at her clearly distraught friend. "Okay, Hermione, what I'm about to tell you may come as a surprise, but I swear, it's true." Ginny waited until she was sure Hermione understood. "You're Mrs. Draco Malfoy- and you have been for the last four years."

A split-second was all it took for Hermione's brain to process Ginny's words. Time seemed to freeze in that instant, but afterwards Hermione felt ready to faint. Spots began to cloud her vision, and Ginny's voice sounded faint and far away.

"Hermione? Hermione!" Ginny passed her hand in front of Hermione's eyes, but the older girl didn't snap out of her daze. "Harry! Harry, come quick!"

Harry barrelled down the stairs, his clothes having obviously been put on in a hurry. His question died on his lips when he saw his wife bending over Hermione.

"Lie her down," he commanded, rushing over. He took Hermione's clammy hands in his warm ones. "Hermione? Close your eyes and breathe deeply for a while."

Hermione, who was starting to recover, heard his instructions and followed them. When she next opened her eyes, her vision had cleared, and Harry and Ginny were peering at her, worry etched all over their faces.

"What happened, Hermione?" Harry asked concernedly. "Ginny told me that you don't remember being married to Draco."

Hermione pushed them away and sat up, rubbing her temples. "I don't know," she moaned. "I can't remember. It can't be true- I wouldn't marry him!" She looked at Harry for confirmation.

He shook his head. "You did. You shocked us- all of us. We had no idea, you kept it top-secret until you told us about your engagement. You really don't remember any of it?"

"But you love him so much!" Ginny piped up. Hermione wanted to really faint at those words.

She shook her head. "No. I can't. I hate him! This is must be a dream. Please Harry," she turned to her best friend pleadingly, "please tell me this is a dream. It's the only explanation."

"I wish I could," he said, patting her arm sympathetically. "But I'm pretty sure this isn't one."

Hermione groaned. "Harry. Why would I marry him? He's Malfoy! I can't believe you let me!" She looked at him accusingly.

Harry chuckled. "Hermione, since when have you needed our permission to do something?" She grudgingly admitted the validity of his point, and Harry changed the subject. "Does Malfoy remember?"

Hermione shook her head. "No. At least, I don't think so. I didn't exactly hang around to talk to him, but he seemed as surprised to see me as I was to see him." She closed her eyes and lay back down. "What happened last night?"

"Well," Harry began cautiously, "Ginny and I had a party. It was our fifth wedding anniversary. Everyone was there. Nothing extraordinary happened."

"Wait," Ginny said excitedly. "Something did! You and Draco had the most brilliant row you've had in ages. I couldn't quite get it, but it was something about Ralph- Merlin! We forgot about Ralph."

"Ralph?" Hermione asked timidly.

"Your son."

With a resigned sigh, Hermione accepted this new fact. She shouldn't have been surprised, after all, if she and Malfoy normally engaged in the bedroom activities they had done the previous night. In fact, Hermione was grateful there was only one. "Wait- there is only one, right?"

"Yes, but he's the most adorable thing, Hermione! He's so smart for his age- he's three, by the way- but that's not surprising, considering you're his mother. When you see him, you'll want more," Ginny said, before casting a meaningful glance at her ever-oblivious husband.

"But not with his father," Hermione muttered darkly. Thoughts of a son made her realize that she had to take a Morning After Potion, since she couldn't remember if she had taken a Contraceptive Potion or not.

Harry still looked worried. "Maybe it's time you talked to Draco, Hermione. See what he remembers, if any. We can go with you."

"Well, one of us can go with you," Ginny corrected. "We promised to take James and Lily to the zoo today, with their little friends. I can go with her."

"No," Hermione said, sitting up slowly, "you two enjoy your day."

"We can't just leave you."

"I'll talk to Malfoy, look for Ralph, and research in a library or something." She stood up shakily. "I'll be fine. If I need anything, I'll owl you."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, looking reluctant to leave her. "This could be serious. Maybe we should report it to-"

"To who?" Hermione asked. "The Aurors? St. Mungo's? No. This could be temporary. And besides, I don't want people finding out that I've lost my memory. It's… embarrassing," she admitted. She took a deep breath. "We'll figure this out."

Harry and Ginny exchanged glances but agreed with Hermione. "There's Sunday lunch at the Burrow tomorrow, you can ask everyone if they saw anything."

"Right." Hermione gave them both a wan smile. "Thanks."

Harry gave her a hug. "Don't hesitate to owl."

"I won't." She headed for the fireplace then turned back to her friends. "I can't believe I've been married for four years and I don't remember any of it. And I can't believe I haven't murdered Malfoy yet!"

"Ron prays for it every day," Harry joked. "Just don't kill him until we've gotten to the bottom of this."

Hermione sighed. "You're right, Harry." She grabbed some Floo powder and then hesitated. "Where do I live?"

"Malfoy Manor."

With a feeling of dread, Hermione Flooed home.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Hope you all enjoy this chapter. :) Next one will be up in a few days.

**Chapter 2**

Hermione stepped out of the fireplace just as Draco was stepping into it.

"Ouch!" she muttered, reeling back, holding her head. To her surprise, Draco steadied her and pulled her out of the fireplace.

"I thought you'd never get back," he said impatiently. "We've got to talk."

Hermione looked at him apprehensively and sat on the bed, wondering how much he knew. "About what?"

He stared at her incredulously. "About this, Granger," he said, practically tearing the ring off his finger. "In case you haven't noticed, we're now _married_!"

Deciding that he didn't yet know, Hermione took a deep breath. "Malfoy, I've just been over to see Ginny."

"You _told_ her? Great, now it's not even a secret! Merlin," he swore. "I thought you were supposed to have_ some_ brains."

"I told her that last night you and I got extremely drunk and ended up married. And Malfoy, she said- she said you and I have been married for _four_ years."

The expression on his face was priceless, and Hermione would have laughed if she weren't his wife.

"You're joking." Weakly, he went to sit on the bed as well.

"It's not at all funny, Malfoy. Look at this." Without really knowing how she knew, Hermione took off her ring and showed him the inscription on the inside.

_Granger - Malfoy, 2004_

Draco closed his eyes. "I'd never marry you."

Hermione stayed silent, privately agreeing.

"Or- we must be in a loveless marriage. That's it. There's no way we could be in love."

Since she agreed, Hermione chose not to tell him that according to the Potters, they were definitely in love. "That reminds me of another thing. We've got a son."

Draco's mouth dropped open. "Fuck," he groaned, flopping back on the bed. "Wake me up when the nightmare's over."

Hermione smacked his arm, irritated. Even though she had never met and couldn't even remember her son, she didn't appreciate people cursing him, especially not the boy's own father. "This isn't only happening to you, you know. I'm just as involved as you are. Maybe instead of griping about it, we can think of something."

"Something like what? And don't touch me, Granger. We may be married but we're not… friends or anything stupid like that."

"It's called hitting, not touching- know the difference. Now, do you remember anything from these past four years? Or are the years a complete blank?" Hermione asked, trying to think.

"Oh, I remember my work, all right. That is, I remember being at the office. I don't remember doing any work at home." He sat up again and looked around. "Where the hell are we, anyway?"

"Malfoy Manor."

Draco groaned again. "So that's why this place is so familiar. We're in my parents' bedroom."

Hermione gasped as the implications hit her. "We've done… Merlin knows what in your _parents' room_?" Her face burned and she looked wildly around the room, almost expecting to see a hidden camera.

"Relax, Granger, my parents are in one of the smaller estates, the one in Kent. That means this bedroom is definitely ours now." He got up and walked over to the closet. "These are my clothes in here. And yours too. Well, I assume they're yours, they're not my mother's."

"So this really is our room…" she trailed off, frowning. "Whatever happened to us last night only has only erased the memories of our marriage. Ginny said you and I had a huge row."

"Not surprising, really. We probably fight all the time. In fact, I bet we're filing for divorce," he predicted. "But that's no reason to wake up completely forgetting our marriage."

"Yes." Hermione checked her watch and stood up. "We ought to check on Ralph."

"Who- oh, the offspring?"

"Don't call him that. He's our son."

Draco snorted. "And really, what kind of a name is '_Ralph'_? It sounds so Muggle." He paused. "Oh, I forgot who I was talking to. Of _course_ his name would sound Muggle."

Hermione grit her teeth. "Ralph is a perfectly wonderful name, and I can name at _least_ a dozen Purebloods throughout history who have had that name," she said in her most know-it-all voice, the one that never failed to make Harry and Ron stop questioning her. As she had hoped, Draco didn't press for details, so she resumed her original plan. "Come on, Malfoy, we should check on him."

Draco closed the closet door and turned to her. "The house elves will take care of him," he said dismissively.

She glared at him. "What makes you think we have house elves?"

"Granger, this manor is huge! Unless you're a housewife who spends all her time cleaning, you should be grateful that we have house elves." He smirked, knowing her aversion to slave labour.

"Even so, we have to find him. He's our _son_, Malfoy!"

"He's a miracle, more like," Draco muttered. "Completely impossible, as you and I would never-"

Hermione couldn't disagree with that, despite all the evidence staring her in the face- like those marks on Draco's neck. Instead, she interrupted him, saying, in her bossiest voice, "Malfoy! We need to see him."

"And where do you expect to find him?"

"In your old room, of course."

"Have fun."

She frowned at him. "You're coming too, idiot. You're the one who knows this place. Lead the way."

"And you're going looking like that?" he asked, gesturing at her wild hair and wrinkled party clothes.

Hermione blushed as she looked down. "I'll just change," she muttered, walking over to her closet to pull out some comfortable home clothes. "And you might want to do something about your neck."

Eventually- after a good deal of stalling- they both felt presentable enough to face their son. "Lead the way," Hermione said.

Reluctantly, Draco did. "What are we going to tell the elves?" he asked as they walked down the corridor.

Hermione looked surprised. "Do we have to tell them anything?"

"They're bound to notice something's wrong."

She chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. "I suppose we could trust them with the truth. They might be able to help us. They must know our routines just as well as we do."

To her surprise, he didn't argue. Hermione frowned slightly; she had expected him to treat his house elves like mindless slaves, rather than trusted servants.

"Right. This is it." Draco stepped back to let her enter. Hermione rolled her eyes, knowing that he wasn't letting her go ahead out of any gentlemanly feelings, but rather out of trepidation.

She had only opened the door a crack when she was spotted.

"Mummy!" came the little boy's shout. He ran up to her, ignoring the house elf holding his trousers

Hermione stared, gobsmacked, at the blond little blur. He barrelled into her legs and held up his arms, expecting to be carried. Hermione obliged.

"Daddy! G'morning!" he shrieked into her ear, having finally spotted Draco, who was still standing outside the room. Hermione winced and turned the child in her arms so they were face to face.

"Good morning, Ralph" she said, hoping she sounded cheerful. She wasn't sure what she had expected her child to look like, but then again, she had never imagined her son to be a Malfoy. Blond hair and grey eyes, he was a slightly less pointy version of his father. That he was Draco's son was undeniable, and he had enough of her own features to make it impossible for him to be anyone else's. "You'd better put your trousers on." She pinched his bare leg lightly, and he giggled.

Walking over to the elf, Hermione set her son down. Draco followed awkwardly, and the little boy twisted around, trying to reach his father. "Daddy! Daddy!"

His cheeks flaming, Draco held out his arms. "Come here." The boy ran into his arms, and Draco reached for the trousers that the house elf was holding. "Come on, don't give the elf a hard time."

With some difficulty, Draco finally succeeded in putting the trousers on his son, who was talking a mile a minute. Draco nodded along, pretending he could actually understand Ralph. Once he was done, he sat back, wondering what on earth to do next.

Hermione, in the meantime, was talking quietly with the house-elf. "Good morning. Has he eaten?"

"Yes, Madame," the elf replied politely. "He desired to eat with you and the Master, but I thought you were still in bed, and I thought it best if he ate ahead."

"That's fine." Hermione suddenly remembered that she and Draco hadn't eaten yet. "Do you know if we have any plans for the day?" She was slightly taken aback by the elf's excellent grammar and manner of speaking, and snuck a triumphant grin at Draco, who was busy with Ralph. She was evidently speaking to a well-educated house elf.

"I believe you and Master Draco and Master Ralph are supposed to join Master Lucius and Madame Narcissa for lunch at their home in Kent," the elf supplied helpfully. If he suspected that anything was amiss, he didn't let it show. "Master Ralph is particularly looking forward to it. That will be in an hour and a half," he added, eyeing the clock discreetly.

"Thank you, Jeeves," Hermione tried to smile, fear creeping into her heart. Lunch with the Malfoys was _not_ what she wanted. She hesitated, wondering how it was that she had managed to remember the elf's name. Probably the same way she had known about the engraving on her wedding ring. "Um, Jeeves- I don't mean to alarm you, but there's something you ought to know." Quickly, she outlined the situation and asked him to inform the other elves, but to act normally for Ralph's sake. Although Jeeves understood immediately and vowed to aid his master and mistress as much as possible, he was unable to supply any useful information as to the events of the previous evening. Hermione thanked him, trying not to show her disappointment, and turned to Draco.

By a brilliant stroke of inspiration, Draco had gotten the idea of tickling Ralph. The boy loved it, shrieking with laughter as he twisted in his father's arms. "Daddy! Daddy, stop!" he'd beg, but once Draco would oblige, Ralph would say "Again!"

Hermione waited patiently while the two played. Apparently, Draco didn't doubt the child's paternity either. Even if he did, even the tiniest bit, he must be charmed by the child, too. She had to admit, Ralph was the cutest little boy she had ever seen. He was all smiles, all laughter. He was adorable. She felt tears of frustration prick her eyes, and she excused herself, making her way back to the bedroom she shared with Draco. Why couldn't she remember her own son? It was horrible, not knowing him. Ralph obviously loved both of them, and it killed Hermione that she couldn't love him as much as she should.

She was sitting on the bed, leafing through a photo album she had unearthed, when Draco found her. He saw her crying and looked alarmed. "More bad news?"

Hermione shook her head. "No, I'm just… it's all just hitting me now, I suppose," she confessed. "I have a _son_. I'm a mother, and a wife. Forgetting our marriage- it's more than just that. We're not the only ones affected. What if you and I never fall in love again? What will happen to Ralph? Will we eventually tell him the truth? And as much as I love him now, I must have loved him more before, with three years worth of memories of him in my head."

Draco looked uncomfortable. "I don't know, Granger. Maybe we'll get our memories back. Maybe this is temporary."

"I've tried every possible spell I could think of, to counter this," Hermione said, and Draco noticed the wand beside her on the bed. "Nothing works." She sniffled again, and Draco averted his eyes, having no idea how to comfort her.

"What did the elf say?" he asked instead.

"We've got lunch with your parents at their house in Kent," she informed him, dabbing at her eyes with tissue. "Which just about makes my day."

"Can't we cancel?" Draco asked, swearing under his breath. "This is an emergency. We can't meet them while we hate each other!"

"Jeeves said Ralph is looking forward to it. He'll be crushed if we cancel."

"Great," he sighed. "Perfect. Life can't get any better, can it? Do you think we should tell my parents?"

Hermione shrugged. "You know them better than I do. What do you think?"

"I guess we should," Draco said, sounding resigned. "They'll know something's up even if we don't."

Hermione pulled herself together and stood up. "I'll take a quick shower before we go. And then, if I have time," she glanced at the clock, "I'll stop by the library and see if I can research anything. I don't think we have time for breakfast anyway."

"Granger," Draco began hesitantly, "do you want your own room?"

Hermione noticed he wasn't offering her the one they were currently in, but to be fair, it was more his house than hers. She would have been happy with her own bed, so she certainly wasn't about to refuse her own room. "That would be better, I think."

Draco nodded and gestured at the closet. "Get some of your things, and I'll go find a suitable room."

By the time Hermione had moved to her new room and showered, it was almost time to leave. She felt mildly disappointed at not having been able to visit the library, but her nervousness by far surpassed her disappointment. Ralph seemed to adore his paternal grandparents, but she herself had no recollection of ever meeting them except under less than friendly circumstances. Draco seemed just as worried, which didn't help matters at all. She stopped by Ralph's room and saw him struggling with his shoes.

"Where's Jeeves? Do you need help?" she asked him kindly. He clomped over to her, his shoes half on.

"I'm hungry!"

Hermione chuckled as she bent over to fix his shoes. "We'll eat at your grandparents' house."

"What time?"

"I don't know, Ralph," Hermione replied honestly. She straightened up and smiled. "Let's go look for-" she hesitated for a while "-Daddy."

"Okay." Ralph held her hand and together they walked to the master bedroom. Draco looked up from the photo album when they entered.

"Ready?"

Hermione was glad to see that she wasn't the only one who was nervous. "Ready," she said, picking up Ralph up and holding him close to her. "Now remember, hold tight," she told him. He nodded against her, and they both watched Draco Floo ahead of them.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione copied his example, and before she knew it she and Ralph had arrived.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Big thanks to everyone who reviews, adds our story to his/her favorites, and story alert. :) Hope you enjoy this chapter!

**Chapter 3**

"You're sooty," Draco informed Hermione, once he had relieved her of Ralph's weight.

"So are you," she shot back. With a few waves of her wand, the young Malfoy family was all tidied up. Hermione, trying to stall for time, fussed over Ralph's clothes until Draco sighed impatiently and turned around, carrying Ralph out of Hermione's reach. Draco led the way to an elegantly furnished sitting room, where his parents waited.

"Grandma!" Ralph exclaimed excitedly, wriggling out of Draco's arms, "Grandpa!"

"Come here and give me a kiss," Narcissa smiled, beckoning to her grandson. Hermione, who half-expected Narcissa to treat them all with cold formality, was surprised.

"Don't just stand there, you two," Lucius said, patting Ralph on the head while glaring at Draco and Hermione.

Hermione timidly took a seat, and Draco copied her.

By now, even Narcissa sensed that something was wrong. She gave Ralph one last hug and directed his attention to the small dog lying down at the other side of the room, effectively distracting him.

"What's wrong?" Lucius asked, an eyebrow elegantly raised.

Draco and Hermione looked at each other, each willing the other to speak. Draco gave in. "Something strange happened. I suppose you two know that we're married…" His parents scoffed, with Lucius raising his other eyebrow in a manner calculated to tell his son to get to the point. Draco did. "Well, we woke up this morning and didn't. Didn't know we were married, I mean. We had no recollection of being married at all."

"What?" Lucius asked in disbelief. Narcissa's eyes widened and she looked from Draco to Hermione.

Hermione nodded. "I had no idea where I was, why I was there, and who I was in bed with."

Lucius and Narcissa looked at each other before bursting out laughing. "I wish I could have seen your faces!" Lucius slapped his knee lightly.

"Grow up," Draco told them, extremely peeved. Both he and Hermione were matching shades of pink.

"I'm sorry dear, but it's funny to us! You must have been so shocked!" Narcissa chuckled. "_We_'re not the ones who have lost our memories."

"We haven't lost _all_ our memories, just the ones about being married," Hermione explained irritably, wishing her in-laws would stop laughing. She couldn't suppress a feeling of relief- after all, being laughed at by the elder Malfoys wasn't the worst that could have happened. "We couldn't even remember Ralph! In fact, we're still at stage where we don't even like each other."

"This is serious," Draco frowned. "For one thing, what caused this? We don't know if someone cursed us, or slipped us a potion, or something. And we don't know if our memories will ever come back."

Lucius shook his head, still chuckling. "Draco, if it _was_ meant with evil intentions, don't you think the person would have done something else? Erasing the memories of your marriage is not something a former Death Eater would do, especially if he had the opportunity to do something worse."

Hermione sighed. Lucius was right, of course. "But if it wasn't a Death Eater, then who could it be?"

The other three looked at each other. "I don't know," Lucius said, "but I don't think the spell or potion was meant to be dangerous. It's worth going to a Healer, perhaps. This condition might not be as rare as we think."

"I was going to check the library, to see if there was anything useful," Hermione said.

Lucius nodded. "Always a good place to start. What were you two doing last night, anyway? Am I correct in assuming you still remembered your marriage last night?"

Draco shrugged. "Well, I don't remember remembering my marriage, but Ginny Weasley- or Potter, now- said we did."

Hermione frowned. "We were at Ginny and Harry's fifth wedding anniversary party last night. I don't really remember it, though- or maybe I do, a little. I think I remember everything, except that I _apparently_ am in love with Mal- I mean, Draco, and the results of that. I remember my work, my friends, and basically everything not related to my love life."

"How can this have happened?" Draco asked his parents. "And I don't just mean this whole memory loss mess; how could I have married someone like _her_? She's-"

"How dare you talk about your wife in that manner!" Lucius was appalled. Draco, having clearly expected some sympathy from his parents, was taken aback. "She is the mother of your child, Draco!"

"Well, it's not like I remember that fact! I don't even like her."

"She is sitting right beside you, dear, and we all know she can hear you. You're a grown and married man, I don't need to tell you to apologize. Hermione, I know he's my son, but how could you have married someone so disgustingly rude?" Narcissa asked, causing Draco to flush.

"I wish I knew," Hermione replied ruefully. She was as surprised as Draco was that his parents were on her side. It wasn't as if she hadn't expected him to make such a comment. She sent Draco a sympathetic look. After all, she and he were used to insulting each other. She rather thought that Narcissa's retort had been crueller. Her in-laws certainly weren't the people she had always imagined them to be. She knew they had both spent time in Azkaban following the war. Narcissa's sentence had been reduced after Harry's testimony about her help in the last battle, but it was likely that Lucius hadn't been out of Azkaban for very long. Perhaps their stint in prison had changed their mindsets.

"You just need help remembering," Narcissa said decisively. "Maybe something can trigger your memory."

Hermione snorted. "You'd think waking up next to each other would trigger it. Or, if not that, then seeing Ralph."

All of the adults turned to look at Ralph, who was giggling and playing tug-of-war with the small dog. Hermione could feel herself smile in spite of the circumstances. He really was an adorable child. She couldn't believe that he was hers.

Moreover, she couldn't believe he was Malfoy's. Draco Malfoy, a kind and loving father? It was almost laughable. And yet, she remembered the way he had coaxed Ralph into his trousers, and then played with him afterwards. It was obvious Ralph adored his daddy.

"You know," Narcissa said, still watching her grandson, "if you two need time to sort things out, Lucius and I can take Ralph for a while. At least, until this problem gets fixed."

Hermione looked at Draco, who raised his eyebrows at her. She turned back to Narcissa. "Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy-"

"Narcissa," the older woman corrected. "Or Mother, if you'd like. You're Mrs. Malfoy now too."

Hermione grimaced. "Oh right. Thank you, Narcissa," she tried again, "but I think it's best if Ralph stays with us. We don't know if this problem will ever be fixed, and it would be more difficult on him if we weren't there. It's bad enough that we don't remember him, and if we continue to distance ourselves from him, instead of reacquainting ourselves and making new memories, we might just make things worse."

Narcissa nodded understandingly. "Quite true, dear."

At that moment, Ralph ran up to Draco. "Excuse me," he chirped, and waited patiently until he was sure he had his father's attention. "Daddy, lets play," he said, tugging on Draco's hand.

"Sure, Ralph," Draco answered easily, "but not right now. Let's have lunch first. Remember how hungry you are?"

"Please, Daddy? I wanna play." Ralph looked imploringly up at his father. Hermione hid a smile, wondering how Draco could bear to say 'no'.

Draco looked tempted to give in, but his own stomach rumbling reminded him that he hadn't eaten anything that day. "We'll play later, I promise. But we'll have lunch first. I'm starving because I didn't eat breakfast. Be a good boy and wash up now, you smell like a dog." Draco effectively neutralized the sternness in his voice with a smile.

A house elf came to help Ralph wash for lunch, and Narcissa looked pointedly at the younger generation of Malfoys. "It's a terrible pity how you've lost your memories now, of all times! I remember you mentioned something about expanding your family a few months ago- I wonder how that's going?"

Hermione blushed and shot a glance at Draco, who was making a strange choking sound. "Um…Did we say that?"

"Yes, I distinctly remember something about one or two more children."

"Mother, I hardly think that in the current circumstances where we're not even sleeping in the same room-" Draco was pink in the face. "I mean, more children aren't exactly our top priority right now."

"Hmm," Narcissa said, sounding slightly disappointed. "I do understand, but-"

"'Cissy, did I hear Ralph calling for you?" Lucius asked, sounding deceptively innocent. Narcissa eyed him suspiciously.

"I'm sure I did," Hermione piped up, for once glad that she had married into a family of Slytherins.

Narcissa gracefully got to her feet. "I'd better see what he wants, and then let's have lunch. You look peaky, dear." She directed her last comment at Draco.

Once she was safely out of earshot, Lucius looked at his son. "I do hope you know that your mother was just making that up. She's desperate for more grandchildren."

Draco breathed a sigh of relief. "I suspected, of course, but with Mother one never really knows." He shot a sideways glance at Hermione. "I don't suppose we should get a test, just to make sure?"

Hermione pretended not to hear him. As far as she could remember, she'd never had to worry about pregnancy before. Pregnancy was practically a foreign concept to her. It was hard for her to grasp the idea that she'd already experienced something so monumental and had absolutely no recollection of it. The idea left her shaken.

The Malfoy men seemed to notice her discomfort. "Shall we proceed to lunch?" Draco suggested.

"Oh!" Hermione exclaimed, coming to a realization. "If we had been trying for another child, I doubt I would have had any alcohol last night." She was so relieved that she forgot she had pretended not to hear Draco's suggestion of a pregnancy test. "So we're in the clear."

Draco looked quite relieved too. "You're right. Thank Merlin!"

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "Excellent reasoning. I suppose I shall have to be the one to break the news to Narcissa. Now, lunch?"

Lunch was as pleasant as it could be despite the circumstances. They avoided the delicate topic of the memory loss, and spent half of the meal discussing current events, and the other half teasing Ralph.

Ralph had by no means forgotten Draco's promise, and neither had Draco. They headed for the small playground that Lucius and Narcissa had had built especially for their grandson. Draco rolled his eyes when he saw it- his strict parents turned out to be doting grandparents who loved to spoil his son.

"Don't play too long, it's quite cold," Narcissa cautioned them, as she, Lucius and Hermione sat in a small gazebo near the playground. "It might snow later today."

"It's all right, Mother, we're all wrapped up. Careful now," Draco warned Ralph as the little boy immediately began to climb up the stairs that led to the slide.

Ralph nodded and concentrated on what he was doing. "Hold on tight, hold on tight," he told himself over and over, "I'm all right."

Draco only barely managed not to laugh at his son's mantra. How many times must he have told Ralph to hold tight? He caught the boy at the bottom of the slide and swung him around in the air, both of them yelling in delight. Draco, who had never felt comfortable around children before, was in his element. As he played with Ralph, he wondered, filled with a new kind of anger, who could have taken these precious memories away?

And were they really gone? Playing with Ralph felt so natural, Draco wondered if the memories were just buried deep in his mind, still there somehow. Perhaps if they tried using a Pensieve…

"Zoom!" Ralph yelled as Draco swung him around. "Zoooom!"

"Zoom!" Draco agreed, tossing Ralph into the air and catching him again.

"Daddy, that's not zoom," the little boy said sternly. "That's 'whoosh'."

Draco looked chastised. "Sorry. Whoosh, then," he threw Ralph into the air again. Ralph shrieked with delight.

Hermione watched them from the side, a smile wide on her face. "Careful, you two just ate," she yelled. Then she turned to Lucius and Narcissa. "Malfoy's a pretty good father." It was a statement, not a question.

Narcissa nodded. "He is. Draco runs the company and so has a rather flexible schedule, and he oftentimes prefers to work from home unless he has meetings, so he can spend more time with Ralph. Unfortunately, sometimes his schedule gets quite erratic, which is why it's also good that your work hours are regular. I do hope you two sort everything out," she said. "If you need help, or have any questions, Lucius and I are right here."

Hermione had so many questions, she didn't know where to start. "Do you know why we named him Ralph?" she asked curiously. "Malfoy finds it terribly Muggle. Did we fight about that too?"

"I'm not sure how much you two argued that issue," Narcissa chuckled, "but it certainly wasn't an easy decision. Draco wanted one of the traditional Black or Malfoy family names- he kept teasing you with constellations, his professed favourite being Hercules. You, on the other hand, would read everything you could get your hands on and jot down long lists of every possible name. You stumbled upon Raphael- it means 'God heals'. It seemed like a fitting name, for both you and Draco had been through much in the war, and were still in the process of healing and living. You chose Raphael and Draco chose Cepheus- which means the king- as a second name."

"Raphael Cepheus. And we shortened it to Ralph," Hermione realized. "Well, he does look like an angel." _And is treated like a king_, she thought.

Narcissa smiled. "That, he does."

Hermione took a deep breath before tentatively posing her next question. "Do you know why Jeeves, the house elf, has such excellent elocution?"

It was Lucius who laughed. "Dear girl, I've never met anyone with views on house elves such as yours. You actually _educated_ your slaves!"

His wife shot him a quelling look. "When Lucius and I moved here," she explained, "we took the family house elves with us. You're no fool, and you realized that Malfoy Manor is so big that it needs house elves to run it. So you and Draco looked for elves of your own. You found two young but capable elves who were willing to work for a small salary and who were willing to be taught."

"Draco was in shock," Lucius chuckled. "He had agreed that the elves you hired be paid and taught, but he never expected you to actually find any elves willing to agree to it. I must say, it is nice to hear elves with proper elocution, and Jeeves and Wooster, for all their notions of grammar and wages, still know their place."

Hermione bristled at his condescending tone, but Narcissa stopped her with a shake of her head. "It never ceases to amaze me," Narcissa said, "that you and Draco come from such different backgrounds, and yet manage to make this work. You do fight, quite often, but in the end always manage come up with an intelligent solution."

The older woman's honesty gave Hermione the courage to ask her next question. "Mrs. Malfoy- Narcissa," she corrected herself, "if I may… What changed your mind about me? What made you accept me into your family?" She glanced at Lucius as well, who was pretending not to have heard. She wondered if it was a question she had asked them before, or if it was the first time she had questioned their affection.

"Draco did," Narcissa answered softly, her eyes on her son. "He was so in love with you. It was impossible to miss how happy he was, how happy you made him." Abruptly, she turned to Hermione. "Lucius and I made many mistakes in our lives, especially when it came to raising Draco. We weren't about to make another. And after spending time with you, we're sure we made the right choice this time."

Hermione smiled, blushing slightly. "Thank you."

Narcissa looked back at Draco. "I'm sure things will work out," she said optimistically. "You can't love each other that much and not remember anything of it. But even if you never remember…"

"What if we never fall in love again?" Hermione asked, picking up Narcissa's train of thought. "Or what if we love each other, but not the same way as before?"

"Impossible. That would be like the sun forgetting how to shine just because of a few days' rain."


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thanks again to everyone for reading, following, enjoying, and reviewing our fic. :D It means a lot! Thanks also to everyone who's added this fic to their favorites, it makes our day to know you guys are enjoying it. We'd really appreciate it too if you could tell us why you like it so much- we're currently working on another fic and any and all feedback is much appreciated! :D

**Chapter 4**

"Your mother is quite the romantic," Hermione told Draco later on, when they were back at the Manor.

Draco chuckled. "She seems happier than I ever remember her being."

"Mummy, what's romantic?" Ralph asked, reaching for her hand.

Hermione looked at Draco, eyes wide as she tried to think. He made no move to help her. "It means she's… she likes it when people are in love."

Draco smirked at her. She glared at him, daring him to object. He didn't.

"Come on, Ralph, let's get you changed into cleaner clothes, and then you can have a nap before dinner, all right?" Hermione gently tugged his hand. "You and Daddy played a lot today."

"We played zoom and whoosh," Ralph said, allowing himself to be led to his room. "And then we played Kiddish. Daddy was the broom and I rided on his back!"

"And _I'm_ the one who needs a nap," Draco muttered under his breath, making Hermione laugh. "I'm going for a shower." He left them, and Hermione realized it was her chance to spend time alone with her son. There was no need to call Jeeves, after all; she could manage.

"So you had a lot of fun?" she asked.

"Yes," Ralph nodded emphatically. Then he looked worried. "Did you have fun, Mummy? Daddy didn't play with you."

"Of course I had fun," Hermione laughed nervously. "Does he usually play with me?"

"Not zoom and whoosh, but he hugs you and kisses you and makes you smile real big."

Ralph was very observant, she realized. She and Draco would have to be careful, in order not to confuse or upset him. "You're very smart, Ralph," she said. "I told Daddy not to hug me because I'm feeling a little sick, and I don't want him to get sick too."

"But I can hug you?" Ralph asked anxiously.

"Yes, because you're young," Hermione said, feeling slightly guilty. "Not like your daddy, who's turning into an old man." She made a face.

Ralph giggled. "Can I hug you now, Mummy?"

"Of course, darling," she held out her arms and picked him up. His small arms went around her, and he pressed a slightly sticky kiss against her cheek. Hermione held him tightly, wondering how on earth she could have forgotten such a perfect little boy.

Half an hour later, once Ralph was fast asleep, Hermione succeeded in finding the Malfoy library. She gaped at the sheer size of the room, and the shelves upon shelves of books. Briefly, she wondered if she had read all the books in here, as she would surely have promised herself when the library became hers.

It took a while before Hermione could focus and find several books that looked promising. She took them to the cozy-looking sofa and began reading.

Draco found her several hours later, still poring over the books.

"Thought you'd be here," he said, taking a seat on one of the armchairs.

"I had a bit of trouble finding the place," she admitted, finally looking up from the book. Her head was starting to hurt, as it always did when her concentration was broken after intensive studying. "Did you sleep?"

He nodded. "It's tiring, being a father. Most of the time I had no idea if I was doing the right thing or not."

"I think it's always like that," Hermione smiled slightly. It felt somewhat awkward, to be conversing, and not arguing, with Draco. She wondered if she would ever get used to it.

Draco chuckled, and picked up one of the discarded books. "Did you find anything?" he asked worriedly.

"Nothing helpful," she sighed. It was good to know Draco was worried too; no one else seemed to be concerned that they had forgotten their marriage. They all seemed so bloody positive that things would work out- after the miracle of Draco and Hermione getting together the first time, everyone seemed to think that them getting together again wasn't so far-fetched. She was sure Harry and Ginny had told the other Weasleys by now, but no word was heard from any of them, not even Ron. "If… If certain parts of our brains were affected, there is a chance that those parts will repair themselves and we'll be able to remember what we forgot. But there's also a chance that, when the parts get healed, the memories will be lost forever."

Draco swore. "But the memories are still in there somehow," he said, running his fingers through his hair and slumping back in the chair. "I know it. I know things, without knowing how I know them."

"I know," Hermione said. "I feel the same. But what I'm not sure of is whether those memories, that… innate knowledge, will be forgotten as well, with time."

They were silent for a while, both thinking. "I tried a Pensieve earlier," Draco admitted, after a moment. "I thought that maybe I could extract the memories. But it didn't work. At first, I couldn't find the memories. And then I focused on Ralph, how I knew how to play with him earlier. It's like the memory was there, but obscured, covered."

"A thick sort of mist?" Hermione asked, trying to remember Harry's description of Slughorn's memory.

"Not quite. It was more like a haze, or a blur. It's hard to describe it exactly," Draco said. "It all seemed out of focus, and when I tried to focus on one particular thing, like Ralph's shoes, for example, I couldn't."

Hermione scratched her chin thoughtfully, deciding to try it herself. "That's interesting."

"Let's do what Father said and see a private Healer. One who specializes in memory spells."

"I suppose we should," she agreed. "Before it's too late."

"I can set an appointment," he offered. "What's convenient?"

"We have lunch at the Burrow tomorrow," she reminded him, "so it'll either be before or after that."

Draco groaned. "Lunch at the _Burrow_? Isn't that the Weasley's hovel?"

"It's the Weasleys' house. It's not a hovel!" She could feel them getting back into more familiar territory.

"It can't be anything else, I heard they couldn't afford a house. And with a name like the Burrow-"

Hermione took a deep breath and_ tried_ to count to ten. "I wish you wouldn't insult the people who can help us. They were at the party, one of them might know something."

"Might," Draco stressed. He added under his breath, "The only thing they know is how to breed."

"Merlin, Malfoy, your mother was right, I have no idea why I married you," Hermione snapped. "I've half a mind to find a Muggle lawyer and file for divorce."

Draco glared at her. " Don't you think I haven't thought of that? If it weren't for Ralph-" he broke off in frustration.

Hermione nodded, and the mood in the library changed entirely. "It's not fair for him," she said quietly. "He's smart," she added. "He noticed that there's something wrong between us."

"He's too smart," Draco said, the pride in his voice unmistakable. "He was using his colouring books when I checked on him earlier."

"I hope he won't be too upset by our lack of romantic feelings for each other."

"Very nicely put, Granger," Draco smirked. "What's there to be upset about? We haven't killed each other yet."

"Apparently, we haven't kissed each other yet either, and that's not normal." Hermione tried to say it matter-of-factly, but the heat in her cheeks told her that she was blushing. "I told him I was sick, and that I didn't want you to get infected, but that he was immune because he's young. I don't know how long he'll believe that."

"How deceitful of you, Granger," Draco snickered. "Tricking an innocent little boy!"

Hermione flushed, leaned out of her seat and slapped Draco not too lightly on the shoulder. She was feeling guilty enough. "What would you have told him? I wish we didn't have to lie to him, but we do."

"Lie to who?"

Draco and Hermione turned to find Ralph near the door. Hermione shot Draco a sharp look, realizing that he had forgotten to close the door and their son had wandered in without their knowledge. Thankfully, Ralph didn't seem to have seen the part where she had hit Draco.

"Where's Jeeves?" Hermione asked.

"Outside," Ralph said, pointing at the door. He walked over to his parents. "Lying is bad."

"Very bad," Draco agreed. He motioned for his son to come closer.

"What are you holding, Ralph?" Hermione asked, hoping to turn his thoughts away from lying.

He held up the paper he was carrying. "I drawed a drawing!"

"You say you drew it, not 'drawed' it," Hermione corrected gently.

"I drew it!" Ralph repeated.

"Let me see," Draco said, and looked at it. "Ralph, this is amazing!" He looked back up at his son, who was beaming. He passed it onto Hermione, who smiled when she saw it.

"It's Daddy and me playing," Ralph explained. "See, he's bigger than me, so I drew him taller," he said, pointing to a long scribble. "And then that's me, when Daddy throwed me into the air."

"When he threw you," Hermione said quietly, her eyes prickling with tears. She glanced up at Draco and saw that he was touched as well.

"Yeah, when he threw me," Ralph said obediently.

"It's very good." Hermione handed the paper back to Draco. "I'll write the date for you, and help you write your name, and then we'll frame it and Daddy can put it in his office."

"That's a great idea," Draco agreed, gazing at the drawing again. "And when I get tired of work I'll remember playing with you." He ruffled Ralph's hair affectionately.

Hermione watched as the two of them pored over each element in the picture. She was amazed at how the crude drawing of a child could become a priceless masterpiece in a parent's eyes.

At some point in Ralph's lengthy and somewhat imaginative explanation, Jeeves entered to announce dinner. The family headed for the dining room, and Ralph, who was riding in Draco's arms, had yet to finish babbling.

"All right, that's enough," Draco said as they took their seats. "That's very interesting, Ralph, but my ear will fall off soon. It's time to eat."

The table was silent except for the sounds of them eating, and Hermione wished Draco hadn't stopped Ralph from talking. His chatter had been better than the awkward silence. What did she and Draco normally discuss at dinner?

She cleared her throat in an attempt to kill the silence. "So, we'll go to the Weasley's tomorrow for lunch."

"I suppose."

Ralph jumped in his seat, almost knocking over his plate. "Yay!"

Draco tensed at his son's excitement to visit the Weasley home, but there was nothing he could do about it. Hermione was sending him a warning glare, and he could feel its intensity, even if he avoided meeting her eyes. Another silence began, and Hermione looked at Ralph. "What else were you saying about that picture?"

After dinner, while Ralph had his bath, Hermione returned to the library. She had made little progress, and none of it was concrete. She rubbed her temples tiredly and wondered if erasing the specific memories about their romance had been intentional. She didn't see what anyone had to gain by doing so- certainly it had brought some strain into the family, but it didn't seem too dangerous, unless there was a repercussion that Hermione had yet to foresee or experience. The thought made her shiver.

What if when she and Draco woke up the next morning, even more of their memories were gone? What if they forgot everything all over again? What if they had been reliving the same day over and over- Hermione remembered seeing a movie like that, one time when she had spent time with her Muggle cousins. Incredibly romantic, but not something she wanted to experience herself.

She was startled out of her reverie by the door opening and the patter of small feet. Ralph climbed onto the sofa beside her and peered at the book on her lap. "What's that, Mummy?"

"I'm just reading up on something." She closed the book and set it aside. Although Ralph couldn't read, she felt uncomfortable with him looking at what was troubling her. Instead, she gave him a hug and pulled him closer. "Mmm, you smell so good and clean."

"I swimmed in the tub!"

"Did you?" Hermione let his mistake slip, deciding not to ruin the moment. "So what will you be when you grow up? Any ideas?" She couldn't resist, she had to ask.

"I'll be like you and Daddy! I'll work in an off- in an-" he frowned in concentration.

"In an office," Hermione said, "but you'll be the boss of everyone, like Daddy."

"We'll make brooms, and we'll fly inside the office." He gave Hermione one big grin and jumped off the sofa, arms spread wide. "I'm flying!"

Hermione jerked forward to catch him, but he landed safely and climbed up, ready to do his stunt again. She took his arm gently and pulled him to her. "Ralph, I want you to promise never to jump off something unless I'm there, or Daddy's there, okay?" Ralph nodded. "I want you to promise, okay? Daddy or I have to be there."

"Yes, Mummy. You made me promise before." Hermione was slightly taken aback, but perhaps she had had that idea before. She found it cute how Ralph skipped his 'r's.

"Okay, that's good. Now you can jump again." She grasped her wand, and when Ralph was in the air, gave it a swish and a flick. Ralph went up, but had yet to come down.

"Mummy! Mummy!" he shrieked in delight. "Look at me!"

Hermione smiled, but was determined to keep her concentration. Levitating a child was not the same as levitating a feather. Many people dared not risk it, but the _Wingardium leviosa_ had been Hermione's very first spell, and it had a special place in her heart. Over the years, she had mastered it.

She kept up the spell for a few minutes, while Ralph flew happily in the air, occasionally flapping his arms. When she felt herself grow tired, she ended the spell, catching Ralph gently. His arms went around her neck, and he pressed his cheek against hers.

"Let's read Peter Pan tonight, Mummy," he said, grinning widely.

"All right," Hermione agreed, standing up. "Ooh, you're getting heavy, Ralph. I think you're growing."

He smiled at her, now looking rather sleepy. "I eat my veggies," he said by way of explanation. "Like you and Daddy tell me to."

Hermione ruffled his hair. "Good boy." She carried him to his room, but once they were outside, Ralph lifted his head from her shoulder.

"Aren't we going to say goodnight to Daddy?" he asked, a small frown on his face.

"Oh, right," Hermione bit her lip and turned around, heading for the bedroom Draco was occupying. "Sorry, I'm rather sleepy."

"It's okay, Mummy. I forget lots of things too."

She smiled. Once they reached the room, she knocked and waited for Draco's voice before opening the door. He was already in bed, reading one of the books from the library.

"Ralph wants to say goodnight," Hermione said, setting the boy down on the bed.

Draco grinned and held out his arms to his son, who clambered sleepily into his embrace. "Good night, Daddy," Ralph yawned, snuggling into Draco's arms.

"Good night, Ralph," Draco replied, kissing Ralph's blond head. "I'll bring him," he said to Hermione, who was massaging her arms.

"Thanks," she mouthed, as Draco threw back his blanket and stood up. She led the way to Ralph's room, and pulled back the covers so Draco could place him on the bed.

"Peter Pan?" Ralph asked, when he was tucked in.

"Sure," Hermione said, finding the right book. "You can go back to bed, Ma- Draco, he's half-asleep already."

Draco nodded, knowing he wouldn't be missed. "'Night, Hermione."

Hermione smiled back, and opened the book to begin. Less than a minute later, Ralph was asleep, no doubt dreaming of flying.

Hermione made her way back to her room, using her wand for light. The Manor was slightly creepy, but it- or the area she was in, anyway- felt like home. She threw back the covers and lay down in bed, deciding to read until she was sleepy.

She had found her journal in her bedside table, and had transferred it to the room she was currently occupying. It was quite enlightening, although somewhat disturbing to read what she couldn't remember. All of the recent entries were about Ralph, and those about Draco were either about how they had fought or how he or she had apologized. It seemed they argued quite often- no surprise there- but Hermione could tell that she had been happy.

The journal became a bit tedious after a while, so Hermione turned off the light and closed her eyes, waiting for sleep to come. It didn't. It wasn't that the bed wasn't comfortable; she just couldn't find the right position. It was almost three in the morning when she finally dozed off, her arm slung around a pillow.

End A/N: For the Hermione Big Bang, Myst made lovely art for this chapter. Couldn't seem to link it here, so we'll link it in our profile. Check it out, it's great! :) Again, thanks for reading, enjoying, and reviewing!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Again, thanks for all the reviews and for adding our fic to your favorites, or adding us to your favorites… It all means a lot to us! It's great to know you're enjoying the story.

Hm, the chapters seem to be getting longer and longer. In this chapter we'll find out the reason behind the memory loss. Let us know what you think of it!

**Chapter 5**

Hermione awoke entirely too early for her liking. The clock on the table said seven o'clock, and although she desperately wanted to sleep more, she knew that she wouldn't be able to. It had always been her habit to wake early. Sighing, she rolled out of bed, gathered the clothes she had prepared the night before, and went to the bathroom. She gazed unseeingly at the mirror for several minutes, trying to sift through her memories. Her memories of her marriage still hadn't returned, but she didn't think she had forgotten anything new. Not that she would know, of course.

She was on her way to search for breakfast when she heard Ralph crying, so she hurried to his room.

"What's the matter?"

Jeeves was fixing the bed, and Ralph was standing near the windows, hair sticking up at odd angles and tears running down his cheeks. His lower lip trembled, and he clutched his teddy bear tightly. When he saw Hermione, he began howling, fresh tears flowing from his eyes.

"What happened?" Draco skidded into the room behind Hermione, and the two of them approached their son. Ralph tried to answer, but he was crying too hard, so his parents looked to Jeeves for answers.

"He wet the bed, Master," the house-elf explained. "You know he feels ashamed about it."

"I'm sorry," Ralph sobbed, finally raising his tearful eyes to look at his parents. He looked like he wanted to say more, but instead he just buried his head into his teddy bear and continued crying.

"Oh, Ralph," Hermione began, feeling sorry for him and wondering how often he wet the bed. "Don't cry. You're only three years old, it's okay if you have an accident."

Draco picked him up, ignoring the dampness on Ralph's pyjamas. "It's all right, Ralph," he said, using his most soothing voice. "When was the last time this happened?" he asked.

It took a while before Ralph could answer. "W-Wed-"

"Wednesday. And it's already Sunday," Draco said, producing a handkerchief to wipe Ralph's face. "You've gone more days _without_ wetting the bed. So it's all right, isn't it?"

"I'm not a big boy yet," Ralph said, pouting. "You said big boys don't wet the bed."

"I was wrong. Everyone has accidents sometimes. Even big boys."

"Even you, Daddy?"

Draco hesitated. "Sometimes," he lied. Hermione didn't have the heart to tease him about it, as she usually would. "Now, what do we usually tell you after you have an accident?" he asked.

"I shouldn't cry about something I can't change," Ralph said obediently, wiping his nose with the back of his hand. "I should help Jeeves fix the bed."

"Can you do that?"

Ralph nodded, and slid down from Draco's arms. Jeeves gave him a small pillow and a pillowcase.

"Please cover the pillow, Master Ralph."

It was his usual job, and Ralph accomplished the task with little difficulty as Jeeves finished fixing the rest of the bed. "Finished!" the boy said proudly, carefully putting the pillow in its proper place.

"Perfect," Draco declared, examining Ralph's work. "Now, just get cleaned up, and then join us for breakfast, all right?"

"All right."

"I'll help you," Hermione said, taking Ralph's hand. They went to the cabinet to choose his clothes, while Jeeves went to help with the breakfast and Draco left to look for the Prophet. "I'm sorry, Ralph. It's quite my fault, I forgot to take you to the loo before tucking you in." There it was again, a vague memory, knowledge of what she used to do without remembering anything specific. Hermione bit the inside of her cheek with frustration.

"It's okay Mummy. I forgot too." He smiled, his spirits much improved because they hadn't gotten mad at him.

After breakfast, Draco and Hermione took turns playing with Ralph while the other did whatever work they needed for the following day. At eleven o'clock, they began to get ready for lunch with the Weasleys, and twenty minutes later both Draco and Hermione were ready. Ralph wasn't quite there yet.

"Be good, all right?" Hermione asked Draco repeatedly. He grumbled and complained, but promised with a smirk that he wouldn't attack unless provoked. Hermione wasn't reassured.

Ralph ran into the room and came to a stop right in front of Draco. "Look at my shoes!"

"Very nice," Draco complimented awkwardly, not sure if he was supposed to have seen them before. They weren't the ones that he had been wearing the day before.

"They're special. They run really fast. My dude gave them."

"Sorry?"

"My dude gave them, remember, Daddy?"

"Oh, yes, now I remember. Your dude." He turned around to look at Hermione and mouthed, "his dude?" Hermione just shrugged.

Draco shrugged too. "Let's go and get this over with, then." He picked Ralph up while Hermione threw the powder into the fire.

"The Burrow," she said clearly, before stepping into the flames. She arrived at her destination and stepped out of the fireplace with a slight cough.

"Hermione!" Ginny squealed, throwing her arms around her friend. "We were beginning to wonder if you'd make it here alive. How's Draco?"

Hermione returned the hug. "Oh, you know. Sometimes human, other times," she lowered her voice as Draco and Ralph stepped out of the fireplace, "prat."

Ginny giggled and pulled back to greet the others. "Hi Draco," she said, before turning her full attention to Ralph, who greeted her joyously.

"Auntie Ginny! Look at my shoes! My dude gave them!"

"Hello, Ginny," Draco said, setting Ralph down. It was strange, seeing these people and realizing he had, most likely, become friends with them. He supposed Hermione had felt the same way the day before, when she had met his parents.

"Come on Ralph, let's go look for your dude," Ginny said, taking Ralph's hand. "They're all in the garden," she told Draco and Hermione.

"Garden?" Draco asked doubtfully. "Isn't it a bit cold for outdoors?"

"Warming charm. With such a big family, we never fit indoors," Ginny explained. "Don't worry, Mum and Dad have perfected it."

Just then, Ron peeked in and saw the new arrivals. "Hermione!" he grinned, "glad you could make it."

"There's my dude!" Ralph bellowed. He ran up to Ron and pointed at his feet. "Look at my shoes!"

"Hey, dude!" Ron exclaimed, raising his hand. "Give me five." Ralph obeyed, and Ron ruffled his hair. "You're wearing the shoes! Great!"

"I'll show Uncle Harry," Ralph said, running outside.

Draco and Hermione stared at Ron. "_You're_ his dude?" Hermione asked, surprised. Draco looked revolted.

Ron laughed. "You really don't remember? Ginny mentioned something like it, but I didn't believe her." He shot an apologetic glance at his little sister, who huffed, shooting him a dirty look before following Ralph.

"Why are _you_ his dude?" From the little Draco had heard of the mysterious 'dude', he had imagined someone much cooler.

Ron looked embarrassed. "Well, I got tired of hearing 'Uncle Won' all the time, so I told him to call me dude instead."

Draco snickered, earning himself a scowl from Ron. "Hey, at least I _remember_ the kid," Ron said defensively.

"You were probably the one who made us forget in the first place!" Draco accused, jabbing his finger at Ron.

"Why would I do that?"

"Everyone knows you carry a torch for Granger." As he said it, Draco felt quite smug that Hermione was _his_ wife and not Ron's.

Ron turned bright red. "That was ages ago, Malfoy," he growled. "Trust you to dig up the past."

Hermione also blushed, and tried to change the topic. "Let's just go outside and see if anyone else knows anything." She headed for the door, and Draco hurried to stay beside her. He wasn't about to be left alone in foreign territory.

When they reached the backyard, Ralph was already playing with the other children, and the adults were anticipating their arrival. Harry hugged Hermione, looking at her with concern, and seemed unsure how to greet Draco, who glared at him stonily. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had no such scruples, and greeted the couple as they always did.

Once Mrs. Weasley had released an uncomfortable-looking Draco from her hug, she clapped her hands briskly. "All right, everyone," she said, "lunch is served."

They all sat down around the long picnic table. Ginny and Fleur sat with the children at another table, while the others remained at the larger one.

"Now, tell us exactly what happened, and maybe we can figure something out," Mr. Weasley told Draco and Hermione as he helped himself to some stew.

"It started yesterday morning," Hermione said, taking it upon herself to explain. "When Ma- Draco and I woke up, we had completely forgotten that we were married. It was… confusing, to say the least."

"It must have been awful to find out the truth," Bill said sympathetically, offering her the potatoes. "I mean, that you had your memories altered."

Hermione nodded, taking the plate. "I went over to Ginny, and she told me that Malfoy and I had been married for four years. And that we had Ralph. The thing is, we can remember everything except our marriage. I can clearly remember my work and everything. But it seems like I either can't remember Draco and Ralph being there, or I don't remember those times at all."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, frowning.

"For instance, I know I went to France last year, and according to my diary, Draco and Ralph were there as well. But while I remember being in France, I remember being there alone," Hermione said. "But with the Malfoys- I don't remember ever meeting them after you defeated Voldemort, Harry. I don't remember meeting them at all, with or without Draco."

Everyone looked at Draco for verification, and he nodded. "Similar to how I remember things," he said, reaching for the chicken.

"I don't suppose you remember if anything happened that night before you forgot everything?" Ron asked.

"Don't be silly, Ron," Hermione sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"Yeah, Weasley. Think about how stupid your question sounds."

Ron scowled at them. "What I meant was, do you know if you went anywhere else after Harry and Ginny's party? Perhaps you have a feeling, a vague idea, anything?"

They both shook their heads.

"I'm quite sure," Hermione said, "but I'm not sure _how_ I can be sure, that we didn't go anywhere else that night."

"Nothing happened at the party?" Draco asked.

"Well, you did have that row," Bill said, looking around at the others. "But that's a pretty normal occurrence."

Hermione frowned. "Aren't we… happy?" she felt slightly ashamed at having to ask.

The others hastened to reassure her. "You and Draco are the happiest couple I know," Bill said sincerely.

"With a son like Ralph, you three seem like a perfect family," Mr. Weasley added.

"And you're both very much in love," Mrs. Weasley nodded.

Draco and Hermione looked at each other, both slightly nauseated. "In love?" Draco croaked. "How in the world did we fall in love?"

Hermione, far from being insulted, agreed with Draco. "After spending some time with you, Malfoy, I have to say that you're not half-bad. But I'm not… I don't love you. Anymore, that is."

He nodded. "Exactly. You're obviously not a terrible mother, Granger, and my parents seem to adore you, but…"

"But," Hermione agreed, "but."

Everyone was quiet for a while, until Mrs. Weasley's voice rang out sharply. "George Weasley! What aren't you telling us?"

They all looked at him. "What?" George asked, chewing his food slowly and looking altogether _too_ innocent.

"You're far too quiet, young man," Mrs. Weasley said severely. George opened his mouth to protest, but his mother cut him off. "You look like you're thinking of something, something you've done or are about to do. You're scheming," she announced triumphantly, pleased to have labeled her son's expression.

"Me? Scheming? Mum, your own son! What would Fred think?" George looked hurt and briefly raised his eyes heavenward. "I was merely contemplating the row between the Malfoys."

"And what did you conclude?" Mrs. Weasley raised her eyebrows. George stayed silent, so she added a threat. "I'll tell Aunt Muriel the location of your shop if you don't speak up. She's been wanting to visit for a while now."

George blanched. "All right, all right." He took a deep breath and looked apologetically at Draco and Hermione. "I did it."

They stared at him, gobsmacked. "What?" Hermione couldn't believe it. "George! Why in Merlin's name-" She gripped Draco's arm to stop him from doing anything stupid, like using the Killing Curse before George could explain himself.

"I didn't mean to," he said sulkily. "I thought I was doing you a favour."

"By erasing our memories?" Hermione's voice rose higher and higher. Her grip on Draco's arm became slightly painful, causing her husband to wince.

"I was trying to help," he said defensively. "You and Draco were fighting, like you always do. And there was this potion which Lee and I had been working on, which makes a person forget specific events in their lives. I thought I'd slip you two the potion and make you forget about the fight. Sure enough, it worked, and by the end of the night you were snogging like there was no tomorrow."

Although disgusted by the mental image, Hermione was too angry to care. "You erased our entire marriage, you idiot," she snapped, just as Draco exclaimed, "What do you mean, 'it worked'? Is this your idea of it working?"

"I didn't mean to erase your marriage," George said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Lee and I tested it ourselves, and it worked! Obviously, I can't remember what I've forgotten, but it did work. I've been trying to think of why it didn't work on you two. Hopefully I can find an antidote."

Hermione sighed, thinking the answer quite obvious. "It must have been the alcohol. When you drank the potion, you didn't drink it with wine or whatever was served that night. But _we_ did. That affected everything."

George smacked his forehead. "Merlin's beard, Hermione, you must be right! Brilliant!" He grinned at her. "Are you sure you don't want to work for us?"

She smiled back, slightly flattered. Beside her, Draco growled. "How do you intend to fix this, Weasley?"

George's grin faltered. "I don't know. I don't know _yet_," he stressed, gulping as Draco's eyes narrowed further. "I'll work on something as soon as I get home. Do you want to help me, Hermione?"

Hermione pursed her lips. "I'd like to, to make sure you get it right this time," she looked at him sternly, "but we've got an appointment with a private Healer this afternoon, and I've got to finish some things for work tomorrow."

George looked disappointed. "Maybe tomorrow, then?"

Mrs. Weasley frowned. "George, do you think you _can't _create an antidote by yourself?"

"It'll take time, is all I'm saying," he said defensively. "It would be faster if Hermione could help. What about you, Malfoy?" he asked hopefully.

Draco shook his head. "Fix this yourself, Weasley." He stabbed his chicken viciously. "And fix it fast."

"Owl me the ingredients you used," Hermione suggested. "That way I can start thinking of potions."

"Ginny and I have an idea," Fleur said, leaving the children's table to join the other adults. Hermione looked at her hopefully while Draco glared distrustfully. "I do not think you will like it, though."

"What?"

"I do not think it will work," Fleur added apologetically, her English accent much improved from years of living there, "but it is worth a shot. You two must kiss."

"Kiss?" Draco was shocked, and Hermione snorted in disbelief.

"This isn't a fairytale," she snapped.

"But you never know," Ginny said, joining them, "it might trigger your memories."

"No, I won't do it," Hermione said, shaking her head.

"Come on, Hermione, you can't be shy, you two are always kissing in front of us. It drives Ron mad," George told her.

"What's one small kiss between husband and wife?" Mrs. Weasley asked impatiently. "You're not bashful teenagers anymore."

"She's not my wife," Draco growled. But he turned to Hermione anyway.

"Can't we do it somewhere private?" she whispered.

"You're making a mountain out of a gnome hill," Ginny said. "It's just a quick kiss, not a snog."

Hermione turned even redder at the word 'snog'. "Fine," she muttered tersely. She looked at Draco, who looked as uncomfortable as she felt. Steeling herself, she leaned forward and kissed Draco's lips quickly.

"You're not sick anymore!"

Both Draco and Hermione snapped around to find Ralph watching them. Hermione turned red. "Uh, that's right."

"Go back to playing with Lily," Draco added. "She's lonely."

Once Ralph's attention was diverted, Hermione groaned and rested her head in her arms on the table. "It didn't work."

"What's that about being sick?" Harry asked curiously.

"I had to tell him something," Hermione muttered. "He asked why Draco and I don't hug anymore." She stood up in frustration. "I'm going inside."

She left the table. Everyone turned to look at Draco instead, and he glared back at them. "I'm not going after her."

"I'll go," Ron volunteered. "I have to use the loo anyway." Draco scowled at the redhead, but didn't move.

Ron found Hermione sitting on the sofa, staring blankly at the fireplace. "It's too hard," she whispered.

"Hermione, I know you'll remember eventually. You never forget anything," he said comfortingly. "It may not be today, or this week, but you'll remember. Or you'll learn. It's what you do."

Hermione chuckled in spite of herself, and wiped a tear off her cheek. She leaned over and hugged Ron. When she pulled back, he offered her a tentative smile, which she returned. "So you're his dude?"

"Yep," Ron replied proudly. "And you're his mum."

"Hollywood and cable television have influenced you too much," Hermione said, shaking her head. "Why did you buy him shoes?"

"They were for his birthday."

Hermione groaned. "I don't even know when that is! This is horrible. I certainly don't feel like his mum."

"13th of November, a few months ago. The shoes were a bit big, so he's only started wearing them now. Ralph had a party in your Manor. It was an arctic themed costume party, and he went as an Eskimo. Draco was one of Santa's elves and you were a Muggle on an expedition, or so you said. Oh, and Lucius' costume was priceless," Ron said, his face breaking into a wide smile, "he was a penguin!"

Her jaw dropped. "You're joking! I'd remember something like _that_."

Ron shook his head. "Nope, no joke. I'll show you a picture one time," he chuckled. "It was Ralph's request. Narcissa went as a polar bear, but she managed to pull it off."

Hermione sighed. "You know, I'd strangle George if I thought that would solve anything. That must have been the party of the century, and I can't even remember it!"

"He'll fix it, Hermione. George always does."

They were silent for a few moments, before Hermione gave an irritated huff. "You know what else is really annoying?" she asked with a scowl. "Malfoy. I was looking at him earlier, trying to find out what I saw in him, and I don't see it. He's not even that good looking!"

Ron raised his eyebrows skeptically. "Ginny would have a heart attack if she heard you say that."

"All right, so maybe he is a little good looking," Hermione amended, "but in an annoying way. Good looking in an 'I'm much better than you' kind of way. What's so funny?" she asked as Ron began to laugh.

"You said the same thing years ago," he explained. "And Ginny and Fleur always said you were just saying that because you didn't want to admit that you found him attractive."

Hermione's cheeks burned. "I do _not_ find him attractive."

"Not too long afterwards- all right, maybe a year or so- you announced you were going to marry him."

"That doesn't prove anything," she grumbled. "He still looks like an arrogant git."

"True," Ron agreed. "So what's your next step?"

"We're going to see a private Healer in half an hour. We'll leave Ralph here, then go and see if the Healer can help us. I'm not holding my breath."

"George'll figure something out," he assured her. "It might take years, but he'll do it."

"I don't want it to take years," Hermione groaned. "I need to remember how I lost my sanity and married Draco bloody ferret Malfoy."

"Is he being awful?" Ron asked sympathetically. "Harry and I always thought he was quite a good husband to you. Better than we expected, anyway."

"He's not that awful, actually," she admitted. "I just can't stand the idea of being married, and… and sleeping with him! I've been considering taking Amortentia. To speed up the process of falling in love."

"I've been wondering about that, actually," Ron remarked, leaning back against the sofa. "Do you _need_ to fall in love with him again? I mean, the potion affected your memory, not your emotions. Maybe you don't remember _why_, but you do love him."

"I've been wondering that too," Hermione said. "But trust me, if I still love him, I'd know."

They sat in silence for a while, before Hermione asked, "how did you react when I told you?"

"I couldn't believe it. Honestly, I never saw it coming. You and Malfoy? As far as I knew you didn't like him, much less were in love with the git. And that was the worst part. I didn't understand why you didn't tell us sooner. The fact that you were engaged to _Malfoy_ shocked me, but the fact that you had been dating him for a while and I had no idea was even worse." Ron grinned at her and patted her hand. "I was a bit mad, but I got over it pretty quickly. You said that my acceptance of it surprised you. I said, give me some credit. I wasn't happy about it, but I wasn't about to fight you about it. Best friends, remember?"

"Wow." Hermione was still surprised. She felt touched by his sentiment too. Leaning over she gave him a quick hug. "You continue to amaze me, Ron. And Harry too? How did he take it?"

"He was quite ticked off that it was Malfoy. Ginny felt the most outraged, I think, because she didn't suspect a thing. I don't think Voldemort rising from the grave would bring out the same expression of shock to her face." Ron chuckled to himself. "Anyway, you said you were sorry you kept it from us, sorry you underestimated us. Of course, all was forgiven, especially when you told Gin that she could help you choose your wedding dress, which, by the way, you looked amazing in."

"Thanks." Hermione checked her watch and sighed. "We've got that appointment with the Healer soon. I hope it's not a complete and utter waste of time."

"Good luck with that," he replied, patting her back and then stretching out across the sofa she vacated. His legs dangled off one of the chair's arms. "I think I'll take a nap."

Hermione smiled at him fondly. "See you later."

**End notes**: What do you think? Of the memory loss _and_ Lucius' penguin suit? Haha. :D


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, and for favoriting and adding our fic to your story alerts. :) It all makes us so happy! As we've probably mentioned before, we've never written anything this long, and it's a big boost to know you all like it. So thank you all so much!

This chapter is a bit shorter than the last, but we rather like it. :)

PS: Does anyone want to try drawing Lucius in a penguin outfit? hehe.

**Chapter 6**

Healer Schlemm, Wizarding Britain's most prominent healer of mental afflictions, was absolutely no help. None of his spells or potions worked, and Draco and Hermione left feeling very disgruntled and irritable. Hermione managed, with great self-control, not to snap at Ralph while he chattered nonstop at dinner. He was attempting to sing some nursery rhymes that Mrs. Weasley had taught the children, although he mixed up half the words, which only added to his parents' irritation. After they put him to bed, both she and Draco went to their own rooms without speaking, frustrated with their situation.

Despite how tired she felt, sleep once again eluded Hermione. She was agitated, and tried all of the relaxation techniques she had learned at Hogwarts, to prevent stress. None of them worked. Or rather, they worked, but sleep still wouldn't come. It was almost two in the morning when she threw off the covers and decided to look for the kitchen. She hadn't eaten much for dinner, and although hunger didn't usually prevent her from sleeping, she was so desperate she'd try anything.

It was only when she was outside her bedroom that she realized she didn't know where to find the kitchen. She paused outside Draco's room, tempted to ask him, but all was quiet inside, and no light shone through the crack under the door. He was probably sleeping, the lucky git.

Hermione decided to just walk around until she found her destination. In all likelihood, her subconscious- that deep part of her that still remembered- would lead her to the right place.

She walked until she found a room that appeared to be lit. If it wasn't the kitchen, then perhaps whoever was inside could direct her to it.

A quick knock on the door, and she opened it. She did a double take when she saw Malfoy sitting at the table. "Malfoy!"

He turned to look blearily at her. "Granger. Come in."

"I thought you were sleeping," she confessed, walking inside and taking a look at her surroundings. "Is this the kitchen? I would have thought it would be bigger."

Draco gave a short laugh. "I couldn't sleep. And this is _our_ kitchen. The elves use a bigger one in the basement, directly under the dining room."

"Like the one in Hogwarts, beneath the Great Hall."

"I never went to the Hogwarts kitchen," Draco told her. "So what brings you here?"

"Couldn't sleep either," she replied. "I was thinking of making some hot chocolate. What about you?"

"I came for a cup of coffee."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. "You've got to be joking."

Again, he laughed. "Yes, I am. I just had some biscuits."

Hermione gave him a small smile. He was attempting to be funny, which was a little cute. "Do you want some then? Hot chocolate, I mean." He nodded, and she Summoned the ingredients and materials she'd need.

"Do you ever wonder how we fell in love?" Draco asked suddenly, causing Hermione to jump.

"What?"

"When you went inside after lunch earlier, the rest of the Weasleys told me." He was staring hard at the table, not wanting to make eye contact with her.

Hermione didn't say anything for a while. Did she want to know? Yes, but would she like the story? Once she finished preparing the drinks, she carried the mugs to the table and sat down next to Draco. "All right, tell me."

"It was through work," he said, stirring his chocolate. "I filed something for my company to your department at the Ministry, and it just so happened that you were assigned my case."

"So you asked me out?"

Draco snorted. "No. Well, not right away." He was silent for a while. "According to them, it was a secret for a long while. They knew that you and I would meet for work, but they didn't know that we had progressed from business dinners to…dinners."

"Oh." Hermione stirred her drink absently. "I wonder how you asked me out, and why I accepted."

"Apparently I had to ask several times before you agreed."

"Oh." She couldn't think of a suitable reply. So he had fallen first. Would it be the same the second time around?

Minutes passed without them speaking. It wasn't long before they finished their hot chocolate drinks, and Draco leaned back in his chair. "Granger, did you put anything in this? I'm sleepy all of a sudden."

Hermione shook her head, although she was starting to feel drowsy as well. "No, it's just plain old hot chocolate." She got no reply, and when she looked at Draco, he appeared to be asleep.

Hermione groaned and slumped forward onto the table, pillowing her head on her arms. "Great." She had to clear up the mugs, wake Draco, then go to bed. She closed her eyes. Just for a minute, she promised herself.

She started awake when a house elf patted her arm. A quick glance at the clock told her it was just past six; she and Draco had slept for almost four hours.

"Good morning, Madam Hermione," the elf said timidly. "You and Master Draco should go back to bed. You can sleep again until seven."

It took a moment for the elf's words to penetrate her sleep-fogged brain. When they did, Hermione stood up, pushing the chair back. "Thank you, Wooster," she said, grinning ruefully. "I think we'll do that." She rubbed her neck with one hand and shook Draco with the other. "Wake up, Malfoy."

He lifted his head up from the table and looked around. "What?"

"We fell asleep," Hermione explained. "Wooster just woke me up. We ought to go back to our beds and sleep until we have to get ready for work."

"Right," Draco nodded, standing up and surreptitiously Vanishing the small puddle of drool that had accumulated on the table. He rolled his head and stretched. "Ouch."

"My neck is stiff," Hermione said as they left the kitchen. "I can't believe we slept like that for four hours!"

"We're tired," he said, stifling a yawn. "I didn't sleep well the night before."

"Neither did I." Hermione sighed as she reached her bedroom. "See you at breakfast."

"Good night," Draco smiled at her, before going to his room. Hermione stared at his back for a moment before opening her door and slipping inside, her heart fluttering. She chastised herself before climbing into bed.

"Not attractive at all," she told herself, falling back against the pillows. "Not the least bit handsome."

She sighed and stared up at the ceiling, feeling foolish. Deciding it was impossible to argue with oneself, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

All too soon Hermione was being shaken awake by the same elf. "Madame, it is seven-quarter," he explained hesitantly. "You don't want to rush getting ready for work."

Hermione groaned and rolled over, resisting the urge to yell at Wooster to leave her alone. Instead, she forced herself to sit up and even thank him. "Have you woken Malfoy yet?"

"No, Madame. I will do so now." With a little bow, he left her, and Hermione collapsed back onto the bed. Her work wasn't set to start until half eight, she had plenty of time to get ready.

And then she remembered Ralph. Unfortunately, she had to keep reminding herself about him. He would need some attention before she and Draco left- she felt bad that she didn't see Ralph enough during weekdays, only before and after work.

Although she was dreadfully sleepy, Hermione somehow managed to make herself presentable for the office. She headed for the dining room, and found Draco already there, looking supremely irritated. It didn't take long to discover the cause.

"Good morning, Mummy!" Ralph's voice was high-pitched with excitement, and sounded altogether too cheerful.

"Good morning," she replied, leaning in as he gave her a kiss. "You're chipper today."

"I told Daddy my dream. It was about a dog- it was huge! I rided on it's back-"

"Rode," Draco snapped. "I already told you."

Ralph stopped speaking and looked at his father. "Sorry, Daddy. I forgot."

"It's all right." Draco turned his attention back to his breakfast, and all three of them stayed quiet. Ralph pushed away his plate, but Jeeves managed to convince him to eat cereal instead. Only a few minutes passed before Draco stood.

"Right, I'm off. See you all later."

Hermione looked at him in surprise. "It's still early."

He only shrugged and waved goodbye. Ralph watched him go and turned to Hermione. "Mummy, is he mad at me?"

Hermione sighed and poured herself some coffee. "No, he's just cranky because he's sleepy."

"Oh." Ralph crunched loudly on his cereal and swung his legs underneath him.

"I'm glad to see you don't seem to be sleepy at all," Hermione said.

"Nope! I had a dream about a huge dog…" Ralph chattered throughout the rest of Hermione's breakfast, and only stopped when she saw that she had only ten minutes left to get ready. Giving him a hurried goodbye kiss, she sped to her room to brush her teeth and gather her things. Once she had everything, she Flooed to work.

It was a relief to get to the Ministry, where she didn't have to worry about Ralph or Draco. Even though there were little reminders of them- pictures of her son and husband waved at her from her desk and the walls- she didn't have to deal with the noise that came with them.

Both Harry and Ron called her to see how she was doing. It was sweet of them, but Hermione wished they had something more positive to tell her, like that George had finished the antidote. She knew it was unreasonable to expect it so soon, but she was tired of holding it all together.

At half past six, Hermione packed up her things and slowly made her way to the Floo points. She was already an hour later than usual, but she wasn't in any particular rush to get home.

"Malfoy Manor," she said with a reluctant sigh, allowing herself to be brought home.

The first thing she saw when she arrived was Ralph, sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace. "Mummy!" he scrambled to his feet and ran to hug her legs. "You're late. I thought you wouldn't come home."

Hermione bit back a groan and dropped her bag, bending down to pick Ralph up. She noticed the tear tracks on his cheeks. "Were you crying?" she asked gently, pushing his hair away from his face.

"I thought you wouldn't come home," he said again, fresh tears spilling down his cheeks.

"I had lots of extra work," Hermione said. It was a white lie; she had only worked overtime because she wanted a break from home, and not because she really had to.

"Does Daddy have extra work too?"

"He's not yet home?"

"No. I thought you both left me." Ralph sniffled. "You didn't say."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said guiltily. She wasn't being a very good mother. "I guess I forgot to call." She kissed his forehead and tried to smile. "Ralph, you know Daddy and I would never leave you, right?"

He wiped his nose and nodded. "But I _thought_ you did."

"We might come home late sometimes, but I promise, Ralph, we'll always come home. All right?"

"All right." He wrapped his tiny arms around her neck and hugged her.

"Daddy and I love you very much." _We just can't remember you_, she thought bitterly, annoyed at George. She wondered if he had any idea just how much he had messed their lives up.

"I love you too, Mummy."

She held him tightly, then set him down. "So what did you do today?"

"I made a picture!" He picked up the piece of paper he had dropped when he ran to her. He had so obviously been waiting to show it to her that Hermione's feeling of guilt increased. Merlin, she was the worst mother in the world! "It's you and me and Daddy eating together. And you and Daddy are smiling. Daddy's not cranky anymore."

Hermione praised the drawing as only a mother could. She resolved to talk to Draco- they would have to try harder at their relationship, since Ralph could sense that there was something wrong.

At seven, they received an owl from Draco saying that he would be late, and not to wait for him. Ralph looked unhappy and barely said a word during dinner, although Hermione tried to draw him out. When it became apparent that Draco wouldn't return before Ralph's bedtime, he gave Hermione the drawing he had made.

"Show Daddy when he gets home," he said.

Hermione nodded, kissing his cheek. "I will. Good night." She tucked the covers around him and read Peter Pan again until Ralph fell asleep.

Half an hour later, Draco finally arrived home. Hermione was waiting for him, and jumped up from her seat as soon as he arrived.

"You missed dinner," she said angrily.

"I was busy."

"Ralph was waiting for you."

"That doesn't change how busy I was," Draco said, although he looked uncomfortable. Hermione glared at him.

"You can't hide from it, Malfoy. Face it, we're stuck in this relationship, and you've got to help me pretend that everything's fine. You can't hide in your work! You need to be here, like you always were. For Ralph's sake."

"You know, Granger, I'm not ready for a child. I'm not ready to put his needs before mine, to always think of him first," Draco said, brushing past her and walking towards his room. "Ralph is cute and sweet, but right now, he doesn't feel like my son."

"But he _is_ your son. And I'm your wife! You can't just walk-"

"And if I could make things how they were before, I would. But since I can't, you deal with it your way, and I'll deal with it mine."

Hermione grit her teeth. "You can't run away from this and expect me to fix it, Malfoy."

"What do you expect me to do?" Draco yelled, turning to face her. "I can't do anything about this!"

"I can't either, but-"

"Then don't tell me what to do!" He glared at her for a moment, then turned away.

Hermione remained silent and followed him, mentally counting to twenty. Once she felt she had sufficiently calmed herself enough to talk rationally, she tried again. "Malfoy, I'll admit I wanted to run away from it too. In fact, I was an hour late coming home. Ralph was worried sick about us. We can't spoil him and be perfect, doting parents one day, and get tired of him the next. He's not a toy. And even if you don't remember him, Malfoy, you must feel _some_thing for him. Pride, and maybe even affection."

"I know! I know, okay? But knowing how I should and shouldn't treat him doesn't change the way I feel. Yes, he's an amazing child, but I can't spend hours and hours with him without getting tired of him. I can't even listen to him talk sometimes without getting irritated." He opened the door to his bedroom and stepped back to let her enter before shutting it again.

"I suppose that's natural, but we mustn't be selfish. We may be suffering from this- this problem, but we shouldn't let it affect the way he should be treated. I know it's hard," Hermione said fiercely when Draco opened his mouth to argue, "but we can't wallow in self-pity. We may not remember it, but we're his parents, and we have a responsibility to him."

"I just wanted a break from everything. "

Hermione sighed, remembering how she had felt earlier that day. "Me too. Sometimes I feel like I can deal with it, other times I'm completely overwhelmed." Now that they weren't yelling at each other, she felt incredibly tired. She didn't want to argue with him; unwilling though they both might be, they were in this together. "I'm sure we'll both need to take breaks sometime. We should just probably arrange it so they don't happen at the same time. Narcissa told me that you sometimes choose to work from home, to spend more time with Ralph. But if you'd like to take a break and go to the office more often, I'm sure it's fine. One of us just has to come home in time for him not to worry."

Draco exhaled slowly and nodded. "You're right."

"I've considered taking a leave from work," she admitted, "but I think it would be best if we kept things as… _normal_ as possible. Maybe something will trigger our memories." She didn't add that she was reluctant to give up something that would most likely become her refuge.

"Normal," Draco repeated, laughing hollowly. "I just don't think I can do this."

"You _have_ done it." Hermione brought her hand up to her forehead. "I almost forgot! Ralph made this-" she fumbled in her pocket for the drawing "-and wanted me to show you."

Draco looked at it for a long while, and eventually put it in the bedside drawer. He turned to Hermione, and she was surprised by the look in his eyes. "You know what I saw when I got to the office? There's a whole wall there of drawings that Ralph's made. I think I've probably framed every drawing of his. For some reason, when I saw them, I felt so guilty, like I'm just an impostor.

But you're right," he repeated. "I'm not, not really. And even if I feel like it, I can't let it get in the way."

Hermione gave him a reassuring smile and moved forward to give him a pat on the arm. "Goodnight, Draco."

"Goodnight. I hope we sleep better tonight."

"I think we will. I'm really sleepy."

"Me too."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Hermione."

But no matter how sleepy Hermione was, she couldn't sleep for hours. Draco didn't say much the next morning, but from the look in his eyes and his general grouchiness, she could tell it was the same for him.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Thanks again for all the reviews! We won't be able to update on Thursday as we usually do, the next update will be the weekend, we think. Enjoy!

**Chapter 7**

When she stepped out of the fireplace wearily later that day, she was pleased to see that Ralph was not waiting. After setting her things down, she tiptoed to his room and found him lying on his bed, talking to Draco.

"Remember when I rided- rode- your broom?"

"Er, not really," Draco replied guiltily.

"No? Daddy! I sat in front of you! We went up in the sky, and the wind sounded like wooosh!"

"Oh yes, that was fun. We should do it again."

"Yeah! Now?" Hermione stifled a laugh.

"Not right now, Ralph," Draco answered, also chuckling. "I'm tired. Maybe this weekend."

"How long til the weekend? When can I get my own broom? Will Mummy let me fly it? She's scared of flying," Ralph said, suddenly serious. "Did she get hurt before?"

Draco groaned. "So many questions, Ralph. I'm too tired to think."

Hermione decided to save him and make her presence known. She tapped lightly on the door and opened it. "Hello, boys."

"Mummy!" Ralph kneeled on the bed and bounced a little. "Guess what I did today?"

"You made another beautiful drawing?" Hermione suggested.

"No, I made a book of drawings," he said proudly. "It has a story, but it's not finished."

"Hey, that's excellent," Hermione beamed, giving him a big hug. His first book! She turned to Draco. "And what did you do today?"

He was lying face down on the bed, so his voice came out muffled. "I struggled to stay awake."

Hermione sighed. "Same here. But we're so tired we _have_ to be able to sleep tonight."

Draco propped himself up on his elbows and looked at her. "I'm considering taking a potion," he said seriously. "If only they weren't so risky."

She nodded. Sleep potions affected everyone differently- some people needed only a sip, while others an entire goblet full. Overdosing could lead to comas, while the opposite could build up tolerance. Also, after taking them for a while, one tended to get dependent on them. "Don't worry, we'll probably be asleep before our heads hit the pillows."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Somehow, I don't think so."

Later that night, Hermione found out that Draco was right. And to their frustration, it was the same the next night, and the next, and she began to wonder if it was a side effect of the memory-loss potion. Both she and Draco tried taking a sleeping draught one evening to try and regulate their sleeping patterns, but to no avail. They were exhausted and cranky, and although they tried not to take their tempers out on Ralph- preferring to yell at each other the moment he was asleep- neither of them, particularly Draco, could completely succeed. Hermione realized just how badly they were doing when she got home early from work one afternoon, and found Jeeves hard at work, persuading Ralph to drop his toys and take a bath.

"Your mummy will be home soon," the elf was saying, although Hermione had a feeling that he guessed she was listening outside the door to Ralph's bedroom, "and you know she wants you to be clean when she gets home." Ralph ignored him and continued to play. "Please Master Ralph, you don't want her to get angry."

"I don't care," Ralph said petulantly, "she's always angry now." Hermione bit her lip, feeling guilt overcome her.

"Let's not give her another reason," Jeeves said sensibly.

"I'm still playing."

"You may continue playing after your bath." After another few moments of being ignored, Jeeves began talking again, with more authority in his voice. "Master Ralph, I will count to ten and if you do not put your toys down and go to the bathroom then I will call your mummy."

There was a small crash, as if Ralph had flung his toys to the ground. "I don't want to! You're a- a- a cold, arrogant git! You're a selfish, heartless, bossy know-it-all bit-"

Hermione pushed open the door hurriedly, and Ralph stopped in mid-rant. She didn't know whether to feel angry with him for using such language, especially against Jeeves, or terribly guilty that she and Draco had inadvertently taught him such language, through their frequent fights. "What's going on here?" she asked, still trying to decide how to act. "Why are you yelling at Jeeves?"

Ralph was silent and pouted at the floor. Jeeves also kept his gaze trained somewhere near Hermione's feet. He seemed reluctant to get Ralph into trouble. "Master Ralph was just getting ready for his bath."

"That's no reason for you to be shouting, Ralph." She frowned at him, and his lower lip jutted out even more. "Jeeves, why don't you take a break or do your other chores, I'll make sure Ralph takes his bath."

"NO!" Ralph yelled suddenly. "I want Jeeves!"

Hermione was a little hurt, but reasoned that even she would prefer a house elf's company to an angry mother's. "You should have thought of that before you started calling him names." Ralph remained silent, so she got his pyjamas and led him to the bathroom, where he proceeded to sulk as he took his bath.

"Do you think I should be mad at you?"

Ralph sniffled slightly and didn't reply.

Hermione sighed and helped him scrub his hair. "I don't know either. But I'm not, honest."

"You're not?" he asked in a small, disbelieving voice.

"No. I'm too tired to be angry. But I am disappointed that you were yelling at Jeeves. He's been really good to you, hasn't he?"

"Yeah."

"So you should be good to him too. Most of the time you are, and that's great. Even if he's a house elf, you have to respect him, and all other house elves. In fact, I'd say everyone deserves respect. Do you know what I mean?"

"What's respect?"

"It means you have to treat him like he's important. You have to treat him the way you want him to treat you, too. You listen to him when he tells you to do something, and you don't shout at him. No one likes to be shouted at. Now do you understand?"

"I think so."

"You don't see Daddy or I yelling at him, right?"

"But he doesn't tell you to stop playing and take a bath," Ralph pointed out.

"Well, I'm not three years old," Hermione said in return, picking up the soap. "Another thing- do you even know the meaning of what you were saying, or did you hear me and Daddy say it?"

"I heard you."

"I'm really sorry about that. Daddy and I shouldn't have been fighting, and we shouldn't have said those things to each other. It's not nice to say things to hurt other people's feelings, and that's what those words would do. I've already said sorry to Daddy, and you should say sorry to Jeeves. And I would like it if you didn't say those words again."

"Did Daddy say sorry to you too?"

"Yes, he did." Hermione didn't add that their apologies had been in the form of "good luck sleeping tonight" and "thanks, you too". Mentioning this would detract from the learning point of the whole story. "So will you tell Jeeves you're sorry?"

"I will." Ralph's good cheer seemed to have been restored, and he let Hermione wash his face and rinse him off. When he was dried and dressed, she left him to play with his toys while she took her bath, thinking that if she couldn't summon the energy to be mad at Ralph, then maybe sleep would at last come easy that night. Alas, it wasn't to be.

When Ginny contacted her at work a few days later to check on her, Hermione was already at the end of her patience.

"Any news from that genius brother of yours?" she growled, glaring at Ginny for disturbing her.

"Not yet, but he's working on it. I've never seen him work this hard before." Ginny ignored Hermione's look and continued talking. "So how are you and Draco?"

"All right, I suppose," Hermione said tersely. "Considering the circumstances."

"Oh come on, Hermione, don't be mad at me. I'm just trying to help."

Hermione sighed. "Right. Sorry. I just haven't been sleeping well lately. Not since the incident, anyway."

"That was over two weeks ago," Ginny frowned. "Why not? Does Draco snore?"

"I don't know. We don't… share a room."

"Maybe you should. Try sleeping together," Ginny said thoughtfully. "Maybe your body remembers what your mind doesn't. I have trouble sleeping sometimes when Harry's away, you know."

Hermione grimaced, remembering when she had woken up to find Draco- _naked_- beside her. Although, she hadn't been any more dressed than him so she had no right to complain. "I'll think about it," she promised. "I can't remember the last time I got a good night's sleep."

"It's worth a try," Ginny insisted. "Ask Draco what he thinks. Has he been sleeping well?"

"Not very well," Hermione admitted, fiddling with her quill. "We don't really talk that much. Except for when we argue. Ralph does most of the talking," she said with a smile. "Sometimes he talks so fast I have no idea what he's saying."

"But he's really intelligent," Ginny said, "he just gets carried away sometimes. He speaks better than James, who's almost a year older, and much better than Lily."

"He'll be reading soon, I'm sure of it. Maybe I can get him to read my reports to me," Hermione laughed.

"You and Draco will fight over that next." Ginny leaned over to give Hermione a hug, before preparing to leave. "You try sleeping in your old room, all right? The one you shared with Draco. You need your sleep."

"I'll talk to Draco about it," Hermione promised again, waving as Ginny Flooed away. Once her friend was gone, Hermione returned her attention to the documents in front of her, unable to make sense of them. She yawned widely, deciding that there was no need to talk to Draco about sharing a bed. Tonight was the night, she promised herself. Tonight she would sleep well.

Later that night found Hermione yawning in bed, awake. Sleepy, utterly _knackered_, but awake. The whole situation was so frustrating that she almost cried. Out of desperation and sheer exhaustion, she decided to give Ginny's suggestion a go. Grabbing her pillow and blanket, she quietly crossed the hall to Draco's room. She knocked on the door and opened it.

Draco sat up and took in the sight of her standing there, holding some beddings. He understood immediately. With a sigh, he moved over to one side of the enormous bed, giving her enough space.

"Thanks," Hermione muttered, a little embarrassed. "It was Ginny's suggestion."

"At this point I don't care," Draco replied, "as long as it works."

To their surprise and relief, it worked like a charm.

When Hermione woke up the next morning, the first thing she realized was that she was in Draco's bed, and she had slept well. She didn't even remember wishing him good night. The second thing she realized was that there was a warm body pressed up against hers.

She gasped, and felt herself blush. This was _not_ supposed to happen. They weren't supposed to actually touch. Hermione moved away as unobtrusively as possible, trying not to wake him.

A quiet voice said, "Mummy?"

"Ralph?" Confused, Hermione turned around and saw, much to her relief, that Draco was on the other side of the bed, where he was supposed to be, and that their son had crawled into bed in between them.

"You awake now?"

Hermione chuckled. "Yes, I am," she said, giving Ralph a hug. "How long have you been trying to wake us up?"

"I didn't try," Ralph said, wriggling to get more comfortable in her embrace. "I was real quiet. Did I wake you up?"

"No, you didn't," she assured him. "You were _really_ quiet. Quieter than a house elf."

He beamed. "I woke up and couldn't sleep," he explained further, "so I came here."

"I'm glad you did. There's nothing I like better than waking up and finding you beside me." She smiled at him. "What time is it?"

Ralph shrugged. "Early."

Hermione laughed and sat up, looking at the clock. "It's half past six. You're right, still early." She looked at Draco, who was still fast asleep, and then back at Ralph, whose eyes were starting to close again. "Go back to sleep," she whispered, lying back down.

He nodded, snuggling beside her again. Hermione put an arm around him and closed her eyes as well, wondering if she'd fall asleep again.

She did sleep, and only woke up when Draco's alarm clock rang. She hastily slid out of bed and turned it off, hoping it wouldn't disturb Ralph.

Draco stirred and stretched lazily. His arm bumped against Ralph and he turned to look, frowning in confusion. "What's Ralph doing here?" he asked, seeing Hermione standing by the door.

"He said he woke up and couldn't sleep again," Hermione shrugged. "I think it's best if we don't wake him yet, let him sleep."

"All right," he nodded. "Did you sleep well?"

A little surprised by his concern, she smiled. "Yeah, I did. You?"

"_Very_ well," he said, yawning and getting off the bed. "I guess you'd better move your things back here."

"Everything?" At his surprised look, Hermione stammered on, "I-I mean, I could just… sleep here and do everything else there…" she trailed off, blushing. "I mean, as long as you're sure."

"If it makes you uncomfortable, we can do it your way," Draco said, going to the closet to choose his clothes. "I was just thinking that it might be better to go back to normal… Like you said."

Hermione looked at Ralph, and realized how lucky it was that they had decided to share a room last night. If he hadn't found them together, there was no telling what conclusions he would have drawn.

"All right," she agreed at last. "I'll move my things."


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Yay, thanks for all the reviews, and for waiting a few extra days for this next chapter. :) We're so glad you guys are enjoying this fic! And sorry, we've been so busy we haven't had time to reply to your reviews, but soon we should have more time. Hope you like this chapter- there isn't as much Ralph in it, but it does set up something very important for the next chapter. :D We won't make you guys wait so long for that one!

**Chapter 8**

Later that morning, Hermione owled Ginny, deciding that she owed the redhead. She wasn't surprised to receive her friend in her office half an hour later.

"You _slept _with him?" Ginny squealed as soon as she shut the door. "Hermione, you slept with him?"

Hermione looked confused. "Yes and no," she said, frowning at Ginny. "Yes, we slept together, but no, not in the way you're obviously thinking."

"Oh." Ginny sank down onto a chair, relieved. "I thought you took my advice the wrong way and _slept with_ Draco. That would have been moving rather fast, no matter how irresistible he is."

"He's not irresistible," Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Malfoy," Ginny said teasingly. She brandished Hermione's letter. "'Dear Gin, just want you to know that we took your advice and slept together last night. It was great-worked like a charm. Thanks, Hermione.'"

Hermione's face burned. "Sorry, I just dashed that off, I was rather busy." She buried her face in her hands. "It sounds all wrong, doesn't it?"

Ginny sighed and pulled Hermione's hands apart. "It doesn't sound wrong to sleep with your husband, Hermione."

"He's not my husband," Hermione objected angrily. "Well, technically, he is, but he doesn't feel like one. I don't love him."

"I know, you say that every time we talk." Ginny waited for Hermione to calm down. "Are you two friends yet?"

"Define 'friends.'"

"Oh, come off it, Hermione. You're the walking dictionary, you know what a friend is."

Hermione pursed her lips, reluctantly considering Ginny's question. "Well, we haven't killed each other yet. I remember to call him 'Draco' now. And we talk decently sometimes. Other times we don't talk at all." She sighed. "I suppose he's not that bad. I still can't believe I married him."

"You know, sometimes I wonder if that's the problem," Ginny said, frustrated. "You say that you can't believe you married him, you don't love him, you must have gone temporarily insane- you're so negative. You don't love him because you don't _want_ to love him."

"I'd love him if I could-"

"No, I don't think you would," Ginny stood up. "You hate him, and you enjoy hating him. You choose not to love him because you think that would change everything."

Hermione stood up as well. "What do you mean, I think it would change everything? Everything _has_ changed!"

"But you don't want to accept that it has! It changed four years ago-no, more, since you two started going out; you just can't remember it. Hating Draco is the only thing you remember, and that's what you're holding on to. Maybe he's holding onto the same thing! But if you'd stop pitying yourself for being in this position, and try to love him- don't fight it, Hermione, even though I know you'd rather fight the attraction- maybe things will revert back to the normal that you _don't_ remember."

"It's easy for you to say, you're not the one this is happening to!" Hermione turned away, her eyes filling with tears. After several deep breaths, she turned to face Ginny again. "I'm sorry, Gin. It's just- this is just really difficult."

"I understand," Ginny said, giving Hermione a hug. "I'm just trying to help."

"I know." Hermione wiped her eyes and sighed.

"If you remember everything tomorrow, and you remember that you love Draco, won't you feel rather silly about _not_ loving him now? I mean, you'll probably look back and think, how could I _not_ love him," Ginny said. "I think you do love him, Hermione. You're just trying very hard not to."

Hermione shook her head. "If I loved him, I'd know."

They were silent for a few moments, before Ginny cleared her throat. "Fleur and I had an idea, Hermione, if you're willing to try it."

"What is it?" Hermione asked, sitting down again and getting some tissue from her bag.

"We think you and Draco should go out on a date. For some alone time, you know. Ralph can sleep over, you know he loves sleeping over- oops," Ginny said sheepishly, remembering that Hermione _didn't_ know. "I mean, he does love it, and you and Draco can go out. Don't even _try_ falling in love. Just enjoy the evening. Take a break. Learn about each other."

"I'll think about it," Hermione drew a shaky breath. "I'll ask Draco one time. Maybe not now when he's still lacking sleep- I've learned to never tickle a _sleepless_ dragon either."

Ginny chuckled and nodded. "Are you all right now? I'm sorry about earlier, I know this is hard on you. It's a bit frustrating for me too."

"It's fine." Hermione smiled and stood to hug Ginny. "I'll let you know what Draco has to say."

"You do that." Ginny pulled away from their hug and smiled at her friend. "Do you know what you said to us when you first told us you were with Draco? You said that you're Hermione Granger, brightest witch of your age, and that we should trust you to make the right decision. We did trust you, and you did make the right decision. So you should try doing that now, Hermione. You know you wouldn't have married Draco without reason, so try to see what those reasons were."

Hermione chuckled. "Did I actually say that?"

"Something to that effect. It was quite dramatic, really, but who could blame us for reacting strongly? It was big news. You might even have said something like 'I'm Hermione Granger and no one, not even you, Harry Potter, can tell me what to do!'"

"Really? God, I was full of myself. Well, it's different now. I'm Hermione Malfoy, and _Ralph_ can certainly tell me what to do."

--

"I wonder why we ever thought it was going to work," Draco mused one evening. Hermione glanced over at him and closed her book. One thing Hermione had discovered in the few nights that they had shared a bed- Draco loved to talk about things before going to sleep. She sighed and turned off the light, snuggling under the covers.

"Thought what was going to work?"

"Our marriage. Us. I wonder why we thought we would work." He gazed at the ceiling, his hands tucked comfortably behind his head. "What was that _defining_ moment?"

Hermione shrugged and wriggled around, getting comfortable. "Was there a defining moment? Maybe we were never sure, but we were willing to risk it."

"Slytherins are always sure," he murmured. His eyes drifted shut.

"If you kept a journal, you might know the answer to that," she remarked, closing her eyes as well. Hermione had to admit, this was one of her favourite times to spend with him. Just before going to sleep, when he was too sleepy or tired to think of insults, when he just wanted to talk. The first few times she hadn't answered him, wondering if his questions where rhetorical. But after a while she realized that he wanted to discuss things with her. In the past few days Draco had wondered about how he proposed, what Ralph would be like when he grew up, what George forgot when he tested the potion on himself, who would inherit the Burrow, and a multitude of other thoughts.

"I wonder what our wedding was like."

"You saw the pictures."

"I don't mean what it looked like, I mean, what it _was_ like. How did Father and Potter treat each other? Did Mother cry? Was I nervous, or just excited? How did I feel when I saw you walking down the aisle, towards me?"

"I wonder what you used to wonder about when you knew the answers." Her voice was already thick with sleep.

He frowned, although she couldn't see. "Don't _you_ wonder?"

"Sometimes. Goodnight, Draco."

"Goodnight." He turned his head slightly, stealing a glance at her. "Anyway, I bet you looked amazing," he murmured sleepily, closing his eyes.

Hermione smiled.

The next night, Hermione decided to bring up Ginny's idea. Sharing a bedroom- sharing a _bed_- put things in a different perspective, and Hermione had to admit that aside from helping her and Draco sleep at night, it also made their marriage seem much more _real_. They were forced to accept that they were indeed married.

"A date?" Draco asked skeptically as they turned down the bed covers and got ready for bed. "She wants us to go on a date?"

Hermione nodded. "I think it's so that we'll get to know each other better. It's sort of like starting over- it'll be our first date all over again."

Draco drummed his fingers thoughtfully before climbing into bed. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt. It might even be fun._ Might_."

"She said we can leave Ralph with them for the night, he apparently loves sleeping over."

"All right. I doubt it'll make us remember, but it's probably a step in the right direction."

Hermione got into bed and reached for her journal, which she used for bedtime reading. "Ginny seems to have thought about this a lot, actually," she said with a wry smile. "I know she means well, but she does tend to meddle in other people's affairs."

"Not unlike you, actually," Draco couldn't resist adding. Then he looked apologetic. "Well, you're not like that now, but you were before."

His words hurt, but Hermione had to admit that they held a grain of truth. She turned back to her journal. "It's all right."

"So," Draco said, oblivious as always to her wish to read, "is Ginny your confidant?" He had to admit, he didn't exactly_ trust_ the redhead not to gossip.

"No, not really." Hermione frowned. "Harry and Ron are still the ones I prefer to talk to. Ginny just… thinks about it more, I suppose. I think she finds it quite romantic, the thought of helping us fall in love again or regain our memories."

"My mum's the same," he sighed. "She doesn't give suggestions like Ginny, but she's forever asking how things are."

"Oh, Merlin, I've forgotten!" She clapped a hand to her forehead. "I should ring my mum. It's been ages since I've spoken to her." She sighed, looking troubled.

"What's wrong with calling her?"

Hermione hesitated. She wasn't sure how much Draco knew. "Memory loss is a touchy subject with my parents. I'm not sure if I'd rather they not know about this. They'd probably have fits if they found out."

Draco stretched out across the bed and yawned lazily. "I heard something about that before, but I thought it was a crazy rumour. What happened?" He opened his eyes and found Hermione sitting tensely, her fingers clenched too tightly on the journal.

"Hey," he said suddenly, sitting up as well. He reached over and gently pried her fingers from the book. "If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine. No need to even think about it." He stretched across her and set the journal down on the bedside table.

Hermione slumped back onto her pillows and closed her eyes. "What happened was the war, and an eighteen year old witch who thought she was doing the right thing."

Draco's eyebrows shot up. "_You_ modified their memories?"

"I changed their identities," she replied fiercely, her hands now clenching tightly on the duvet. "I changed their names, sent them off to Australia, and made them forget they ever had a daughter. I thought I'd spare them the pain and danger."

"But you fixed it, didn't you?"

She gave a mirthless laugh. "I fixed their memories, but that was all I could fix. How do you trust someone who has that much power over you? It's taken time for us to rebuild our relationship, and it's still not the same, but it's much better now than it was a few years ago."

Draco was quiet for a while. "I think you did the right thing."

"I think so too, sometimes. Other times I'm not too sure. I don't think being spared the pain of losing a child is worth forgetting them. I hate that we've forgotten Ralph."

"At least your parents remember you now," Draco pointed out. "Look, stop thinking about it for now. Ring your parents tomorrow, tell them we're all fine and we'll visit soon. But for now, try to sleep."

Hermione nodded and took a deep breath. She forced herself to relax, and then looked at Draco. "Thanks."

He only nodded and waved his wand, extinguishing the lights in the room, leaving them in darkness. They both moved around a bit, getting settled. After a moment, Draco said, "I wonder when we decided to have Ralph. Was it a conscious decision, or did it just… happen?"

Hermione groaned and turned over. "Goodnight."

But while sleep soon claimed Draco, Hermione lay awake. She didn't think she could lie to her parents _again_, but at the same time, telling them the truth seemed so difficult. Draco's suggestion- an omission of the truth- was a possibility, but who knew how long it would be before they regained their memories? How would her parents feel if they were to find out that she had deliberately left them out of her life again? She sighed and shifted position, brushing her hair out of her face. She had to tell them. But that decision didn't make sleep come any easier.

The next morning Hermione was woken up by a hand shaking her shoulder. "Hermione, it's time for breakfast."

She cracked open an eye and looked up at Draco, who was already completely dressed. He blinked down at her and she groaned, sitting up and running a hand through her tangled curls. "Morning," she mumbled.

"Merlin, Granger, you look horrible," Draco remarked. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"No. I stayed up listening to your snoring," she said crossly, irritated that he just _tactlessly_ had to point out that she wasn't looking her best.

"I don't snore!"

She rolled her eyes and flopped back onto the bed. "I was joking. I did sleep- eventually. I came to the conclusion that I _should_ tell my parents about us." She looked at him seriously. "I can't exclude them again. They should know."

Draco shrugged. "You know them better than I do."

"So you're fine with it?" Hermione asked, amazed that it had been so easy. She had spent half the night wondering how she would convince him to agree.

He looked amused. "Did you expect me to argue?" He chuckled as she nodded sheepishly. "Hermione, I don't contradict you for the sake of contradicting you- well, all right, I _do_, but not all the time. If you spent hours thinking about it last night, then you must have some pretty solid reasons. And if we spend any more time talking about this, we're both going to be late for work."

Hermione cursed as she leaped out of bed, checking the clock to see if he was right. Draco laughed as he made his way to Ralph's room to check on their son.

At breakfast, Hermione told Ralph about Ginny's sleepover idea. He was delighted.

"I'm not sure when exactly, but shall I tell your Aunt Ginny that you want to?"

"Tonight!"

"Probably not tonight," Hermione said, considering her schedule. "It's Thursday today- maybe tomorrow would be better. We'll see."

"Yay!" Ralph jumped out of his chair. "I'll tell Jeeves," he said, running out of the room.

Hermione watched him go, then checked her watch. "I'll call my parents after work," she told Draco, finishing her tea and standing up. He glanced up from the Prophet and nodded, reaching for his own cup of coffee. "I still haven't figured out how to tell them, actually. I was thinking, Ralph and I could have dinner with them one evening, and I'll tell them then. I think they'll react less strongly if Ralph is around."

"Good point," Draco agreed, carefully folding the newspaper and standing up as well. "And you think they'll react more strongly if I'm there?"

"I'm not sure." She bit her lip. "I'm not sure what sort of relationship you have with my parents. In my journal, I wrote that they like you. But I thought you might rather do something else that night. I mean, I'm sure there are other places you'd rather be, other people you'd rather see." Hermione had no idea what Draco's social life had been like before they had lost their memories, but these days it seemed he never saw his own friends- it was always dinner with her and Ralph, or a day with his parents or the Weasleys. Her journal did mention that Draco sometimes went out with his friends, and she felt guilty that he had had to give that up. "It'll just be awkward and you deserve a break, Draco. You haven't had the chance to meet some of your own friends in ages."

Draco felt surprise, soon followed by admiration, for her consideration. He had avoided seeing his friends, wanting to get his family sorted out first. He didn't realize Hermione had noticed. "But you deserve a break too."

She smiled at him and together they made their way back to their bedroom. "I don't have many other friends to see, aside from Harry and Ron, and I see those two all the time. Besides, you can take a break now, and I'll take one another time."

"So would Wednesday be good?" Draco asked, thinking quickly. If he and Hermione went on a 'date' tomorrow, and spent the rest of the weekend with Ralph, he could use Monday and Tuesday to get some work done and go out on Wednesday with a clear conscience.

"Wednesday would be fine." Hermione disappeared into their bathroom to brush her teeth. Draco grinned to himself, unable to contain his excitement. He felt a twinge of guilt, leaving Hermione to handle her parents alone, but he brushed it off. She had suggested it, after all.

Later that day, in between paperwork, Hermione fire-called Ginny and asked her if Ralph could sleep over the next night. The redhead was, of course, delighted, so at lunch Hermione called Ralph to check on him and to confirm the plans. The last person that she called was Draco, to ask him to book a restaurant. Then she settled back behind her desk and tried to concentrate, banishing images of her impending date with her husband.

Hermione's last task that day was calling her parents. Draco handled Ralph, agreeing to help him colour some drawings, while Hermione nervously went over to the telephone. After two minutes of staring at it, she finally picked up the phone and dialled.

"Hello?" Mrs. Granger picked up on the third ring.

"Hey, Mum, it's me," Hermione tried to mask the nervousness in her voice. "Just calling to ask how you are."

"Oh, hello dear," Mrs. Granger said. "It's Hermione," she said in a softer tone, presumably to Hermione's dad. "Your father and I are fine. He sends his love. How is Ralph?"

"He's fine, rather excited, as usual." Hermione twisted the cord around her fingers, not quite sure what to say. "I was thinking of taking him to visit you one time."

"That would be wonderful!" Mrs. Granger said happily. "I'd love to see him again. We've got things to do this weekend, I'm afraid- we promised we'd go down and visit your Aunt Jo- but perhaps next week?"

"I was thinking of next Wednesday, actually, for dinner."

"Oh dear, we've got tickets for the theatre on Wednesday. Would Thursday be all right?"

"Draco's meeting some friends for dinner on Thursday, but Ralph and I can visit you." Hermione hoped Draco didn't mind postponing his dinner by one night.

Mrs. Granger paused. "So Draco won't be coming? We could try Friday instead."

Hermione was surprised to hear disappointment in her mother's voice. "We can plan another dinner for when Draco's available. There's... something I needed to talk to you about."

"About Draco? Are you two fighting?"

"We always fight, Mum," Hermione let out a small laugh. "Yes, this does concern him. But no, we're not getting a divorce." _At least, we're trying not to._

"All right," Mrs. Granger said, sounding doubtful. "So it's something serious, but it can wait until Thursday?"

"Yes. Don't think about it too much, it's not life or death." Hermione suddenly realized that her parents might worry. "It's nothing too horrible," she said, trying to force some cheerfulness into her voice. "In fact, in the near future, we might even laugh about it. Oh never mind, I'm just making things worse. Just- don't worry. Ralph and I will see you on Thursday, we'll probably arrive around 5:30, is that all right?"

They chatted a bit more before saying goodnight, and Hermione went up to join Draco as they tucked Ralph into bed.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: We hate to be repetitive, but- thanks again for all the reviews, favorites, story alerts. :D You guys are the best. We've received such wonderful reviews, they always make our day. Hopefully you all enjoy Draco and Hermione's date in this chapter! :)

**Chapter 9**

The date was set to take place that night. Ralph chattered on about the games he would play with James and Lily, oblivious to the nervous tension building up between his parents.

"James has a toy broom," Ralph said, holding on to Draco as they prepared to Floo. "Can I ride it, Daddy?"

"Of course," Draco said, as Hermione disappeared into the flames. "But only if your Uncle Harry or Aunt Ginny is watching, all right? And don't let go of the broom once you're on it."

"Okay. Mummy packed my truck so we can play trucks!"

Draco smiled. "That sounds like fun." He threw the Floo powder into the flames and stepped forward. "Grimmauld Place."

Once they arrived, Ralph continued talking. "It _is_ fun. I push my truck and James pushes his and sometimes mine goes farther and sometimes his does."

"Well, I hope you win," Draco whispered, then smirked at Harry who was watching them suspiciously.

"Planning something evil there, Draco?" Harry asked, approaching the two.

"Just telling him to play fair," Draco set Ralph down.

"Uncle Harry!" Ralph greeted Harry before running off to find James.

"Telling him to play fair?" Harry turned to Draco skeptically.

"Believe what you like, Potter," Draco smirked. He looked for Hermione, who was talking to Ginny. Seeing him, Ginny brought Hermione over.

"Ready to leave?" Draco asked. "We still have to get dressed."

"Ginny was just giving me some last pointers," Hermione sighed exasperatedly. "It's not like I haven't been on a date before, Gin."

"But not with your husband, you haven't," Ginny shot back. "Besides, this date is special."

"Right. And we can't be late," Draco said, turning to leave.

Ginny held him back. "Wait. I just wanted to tell you guys to have fun. Relax. Don't think of yourselves as husband and wife. All right?"

"Sure," Draco tried to look as bored as possible, grabbing a handful of Floo powder. "It's hard to think of someone as your wife when you don't remember marrying her. Can we go now?"

Ginny scowled at him. "You were much nicer to me before you lost your memory, you know."

"I doubt that," Draco said, as Harry began chuckling.

"Actually, you weren't," he told Draco, earning himself a scathing look from his wife. "You'd tease Ginny as much as any of her brothers."

Draco threw Ginny a triumphant smirk before disappearing into the fire. Hermione followed a few moments later.

"Ginny's enjoying this," Hermione said, looking mildly irritated. "She enjoys giving advice- romantic advice- as though this is really easy."

Draco nodded in agreement. "Like she's an expert on memory loss."

Hermione sighed and went to her closet. "Well, we agreed to this, we might as well try. What time do we have to be there?"

"I said seven-thirty. That gives us roughly an hour to get dressed. You can shower first."

"Thanks."

An hour later, they stood outside The Black Cat. Hermione took a deep breath, her mouth dry.

"Are you always nervous before a date?" Draco asked, gallantly offering his arm.

"I just feel like this date is_ really _important, and we can't mess up," she said, taking his arm. "And another thing, I can't remember being on any dates in the last few years."

"We're in the same boat then." Draco led the way to the doors, which were held open by a waiter.

"Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy," he greeted them amicably. "It's been a while since your last visit."

Draco smiled at the man. "We've both been rather busy."

"Understandable, sir." The waiter picked up a couple of menus. "The usual spot, sir, madam," he said, leading the way to a secluded table for two. He held Hermione's chair out for her.

"Thank you," she said, taking her seat.

He waited patiently while they chose their orders. Once he had disappeared, Hermione leaned towards Draco. "Do you remember his name?"

Draco shook his head. "No. He does look familiar, though." He looked at the dance floor, where several couples were already dancing. "Would you like to dance?"

Hermione paled. "Dance?" She laughed nervously. "I'm not a great dancer."

"I thought you danced rather well at the Yule Ball."

"Years ago. Maybe we can dance after dinner, if you want," she offered, hoping he'd forget about it by then. "After I've had some wine."

Draco smirked. "All right."

They were silent for a while, as the wine arrived, and then the complimentary rolls. Draco drummed his fingers against the table, wishing he knew what to say.

"You look beautiful tonight," he finally said, since it had been on his mind. Hermione _was_ pretty, a fact he couldn't get out of his head since he had first seen her all dressed up. She was wearing a simple, though rather sexy, black dress, and she had fixed her hair until it looked like it had been effortlessly tamed- which Draco knew was not the case. There was also a pink tinge to her cheeks that Draco found quite alluring.

"Thanks," Hermione blushed even more. "I wasn't sure- my hair wouldn't cooperate." She looked at him, wanting to return the compliment, but not sure what to say. "I'm sure you know how nice _you_ look. You always look nice."

Draco smirked at her. "It's hereditary. Ralph's inherited it."

It took a long time for the blush on her cheeks to fade, and Draco realized that she was genuinely pleased by his compliment. The thought made him smile.

"So," Hermione cleared her throat, finishing the last of her roll, "how have you been these past four-or five years?" She had no recollection of him during the period that they had dated; in fact, if she had to give her last memory of him it would probably have been his family's trial by the Wizengamot.

"It's hard to believe, but I actually got married," Draco told her solemnly.

"Really?" She raised her eyebrows. "And who is the lucky lady?"

"Can't tell you. Don't remember."

Hermione laughed. "Was she that terrible a wife?"

"I've no idea," Draco said. "I think my memory is just really poor."

"Your poor wife, to be forgotten like that."

"Oh, it's all right," he said, still serious. "The thing is, she's forgotten me too. So it all works out."

Hermione chuckled and shook her head. "The story of our lives."

Draco grinned. "Rather pathetic, through no fault of our own." He took a sip of wine. "But, seriously now, I don't think anything's really happened to me these five years. The company is practically the same, although we've gotten bigger. It's not terribly interesting."

"Well then, I have a question."

"Of course you do," he said teasingly.

She resisted the urge to stick her tongue out. "Why do we live in Malfoy Manor? I don't know why I agreed to it before."

"I spoke to Mother about that. She said she and Father didn't want to live there anymore, and once you and I got married, gave the house over to me. It was a while before we decided to live in it. We lived in a flat first, but then we figured that it was a waste of money, not living in the Manor. It was difficult, at first, but we renovated the rooms where… where things happened."

"Oh." Hermione contemplated that for a moment, then said, "I suppose it makes sense. And why should I be afraid of a room, after all? It wasn't the room's fault. And I hardly remember what it looked like anyway."

Draco looked uncomfortable. "Let's not talk about that."

Hermione was slightly surprised. She supposed she had never stopped to consider how it had felt for Draco, watching her get tortured. They must have spoken about it before getting married, but she couldn't remember and since he didn't want to think of it, she cast around for a suitable topic. "All right then, I have another question." Draco didn't reply except to raise an eyebrow.

"What were your plans four years ago? Did you mean to settle down with a wife and child?"

"The food's here," he said, looking over her shoulder. Hermione frowned but decided not to press him until the waiter had left and Draco had started enthusiastically on his steak.

"It must be hard to remember, but maybe what you felt then is similar to what you feel now," Hermione said, referring to her earlier question.

Draco sat back against his chair with a sigh. "Relax, Granger, I was going to answer your question. I was thinking, all right? It's not an easy question to answer." When she nodded, he resumed eating, much to her annoyance. Eventually he took a sip of wine and turned his attention away from his meal. "I think I had great plans for the company. I fulfilled most of them in the past five or so years- that much I remember- so I must have had plans. As to settling down, my mother was always hinting about it, but most of the time I was happy as a bachelor. Other times I started to think maybe she was right. I don't think I was desperate to get married, but I did want a serious relationship." He smirked at her. "Does that answer your question? Or does it raise a dozen more?"

"I'm satisfied."

"What about you? Did you want to be a mother?"

"Of course I did," Hermione answered easily. "I think I always _wanted_ to get married and have a family, I just never included it in my plans because- I can admit this now- I wasn't sure it would ever happen. There were other, more attractive girls out there than the bossy, bushy-haired workaholic Muggle-born that I am. You could say that I was pretty resigned to becoming an old maid."

"Whatever happened between you and Weasley?"

"I'd prefer it if you call him Ron," Hermione said, frowning slightly. "There are a lot of other male Weasleys, you know. Anyway, we tried it for a bit, after the war. I went back to school, and he didn't, and it was hard to work on a long-distance relationship, especially because there was no… _spark_ between us, I guess you could say. It just didn't feel like what I was looking for."

"Oh."

Both were quiet for a while, calmly enjoying their meal, but her words had left the inevitable question hanging in the air. Neither wanted to ask it, but both wanted to know the answer.

Eventually, Hermione did, but she fixed her attention on what was left of her dinner.

"Do you feel a spark between us?"

Draco noticed that her cheeks coloured as she asked the question, and his own face began to feel hot. "Er," he stalled by taking a sip of wine, "well, I don't deny that I could have done worse- I mean, you are rather- I suppose I can imagine why I fell in love with you," he stammered.

"But you don't feel it now." It was a statement, not a question.

Draco looked up from his plate to find Hermione finally looking at him. "I don't know. Do you?"

It was a very noncommittal answer, and Hermione didn't quite know how to respond. "It could be there, if we let it. It's not like we've done anything to create a spark." Then she shook her head and laughed. "Ginny said not to think about this problem, and that's all we've talked about. I'm afraid it's my fault. Let's talk about your friends. You've met mine already."

"Well, Goyle's one of the assistant managers for the Harpies, and Pansy's a happily married housewife. She married Richard Greengrass, the brother of Daphne."

"Really? Do you see them much?"

"Sometimes. But Pansy has twin sons, and they're quite a handful."

Hermione laughed. "I'm sure! Ralph is sometimes too much for just one person to handle- I can't imagine what it would be like if he had a twin. From the stories Molly Weasley's told us-" the words died on her lips as her eyes darted to her right hand, the hand which Draco was currently holding.

She had been so caught up in their conversation that she hadn't noticed him slowly reach across the table and cover her hand with his. She looked back at Draco, who smiled politely at her. "You were saying?"

Hermione drew a shaky breath but didn't remove her hand from under Draco's. It felt nice, and the way he stroked his thumb across her knuckles sent tingles up her arm. "Why are you doing that?"

"To see if there's a spark."

"Is there?"

Draco stopped to consider it for a moment. His earlier compliment to her-that she was beautiful- had been on his mind the entire night, partly because he wondered how he had missed it before, and partly because he knew it was true. In front of him was a beautiful woman, and he, a man, couldn't help but be affected by her. It was definitely a spark, but was it the spark they were looking for? "I'm not sure yet. Let's dance."

Hermione allowed herself to be led to the dance floor, trying to hide her disappointment. She had been so sure that she had felt something when Draco touched her, but he hadn't felt it. She was confused and embarrassed.

Draco guided her to a spot near the center and put his hands on her waist. "Don't be so tense," he chided gently, "you've had wine already." He nodded encouragingly as she positioned her hands on his shoulders, and they began moving to the music. He was surprised to find that she wasn't half as bad at dancing as she seemed to believe. Then again, perhaps she couldn't remember five years' worth of dancing with him.

Hermione relaxed as the song went on, something Draco was profoundly glad of. They had been dancing too far apart in his opinion, but he had been hesitant to draw her closer while she seemed to be on the defensive. He took half a step forward and slipped his hands around from her waist to the small of her back and pushed her towards him slightly. She resisted for only a moment, then put her arms around him and rested her head on his shoulder. She relished the feeling of his strong, masculine body against hers, although she told herself that she was only playing along for appearances sake. Apparently she and Draco were well known in The Black Cat.

Draco's hands were drawing small patterns on her back, and he turned his head to whisper into her ear. "Damn it, Hermione, I think Ginny had a good idea for once in her life."

Hermione pulled back slightly to look him in the eye. "What do you mean?"

"This date idea. I don't remember any more than I did yesterday, but I understand a lot better. If our first date years ago was anything like this one, it's no wonder we had a second."

That was all he said, but Hermione knew exactly what he meant. They might never remember falling in love in the past, but they both knew that it was a definite possibility in the future.

Feeling slightly shaky, she put her head against his shoulder again, uncomfortable with having his face, his lips, so close to hers. It seemed too inviting, too easy to move forward and kiss him. Hermione didn't feel ready for that yet, and tried to concentrate on the patterns his fingers were tracing.

Draco tried not to feel the puffs of breath that tickled his neck and sent shivers down his spine. He wondered if it had been like this the first time- if the attraction had been this sudden, or if it was only like this because he still remembered, on some level, what it was like to love Hermione.

When the song ended, Hermione lifted her head from his shoulder. "Are you up for another one?" he asked.

She nodded. "All right. One more."

They danced to three more songs before Draco finally led Hermione off the dance floor. "It's getting a bit crowded," he said, leading the way to their table. "Do you want dessert?"

Hermione smiled. "I love dessert. Do you know what they have?"

It was half past ten in the evening when they arrived home. Draco laughed as he and Hermione Apparated into the Manor. "It's strange, going home together," he said, chuckling. "Usually, on the first date, I'd be dropping you off before I go home. But now we're both home."

"Even stranger that we share a bed," Hermione grinned. She turned to lead the way to their bedroom. "We should do this again."

"Asking me out, are you?" he teased. "Can't get enough of me?"

"Hardly," she said, unable to hide her smile.

"Well, if you won't do it, then I will. Will you go out with me again?"

"Draco, we share a bedroom." Hermione felt oddly embarrassed that he had to ask. She wondered if he was a little tipsy. "You don't need to ask, we're married."

"So that's a yes?"

She blushed more, quite unused to having someone ask her out. "Yes, it's a yes."

"Good," he grinned. Draco opened the door to their bedroom and stepped back to let her go first.

"This is really strange, isn't it?" Hermione asked, sitting on the bed and removing her shoes. "I mean, we're married, but we've practically just had our first date. I'm not quite sure how we're supposed to behave."

"Neither am I," he admitted, unlacing his shoes and placing them in the cabinet. "And even more confusing…" he trailed off as he removed his belt.

"What?" she prompted, beginning to remove her earrings. "What's more confusing?"

"Nothing." Draco hung his belt in his closet and got out some pyjamas. "I was just thinking that it's rather confusing, hating you and then loving you, hating you and then… starting to- to not hate you again." Embarrassed, he cleared his throat loudly. "Er, will you use the bathroom first or will I?"

"You can go first," Hermione accepted the change of subject readily. She took off her necklace and then lay back on the bed. "Don't take too long though, I'm rather sleepy."

"I won't." Draco slipped into the bathroom and undressed. He stepped into the shower and sighed as the warm water hit him. Hermione was right, what was the proper etiquette for a date like this? He wanted to kiss her- he almost had, when they were dancing- but it seemed much too soon. He was starting to fall for her- or had he already fallen? In one night, in three hours, things had changed. But it felt right.

Irritated with himself, Draco finished his rather inconclusive shower and brushed his teeth. He opened the door to find Hermione fast asleep, her hair spread out over the pillow, back to its naturally messy state.

He approached her quietly, pausing to look at her. He must have been blind, to not have seen how pretty she was. Not a traditional beauty, but beautiful in her own way. He resisted the temptation to touch her cheek and shook her arm instead.

"Your turn."

Hermione opened her eyes and blinked a few times before sitting up. "Thanks." She gathered her things and took her turn in the bathroom. Draco was still awake when she finished, reading a book. He turned off the lights when she got into bed.

"Good night, Draco," Hermione said, snuggling under the blanket.

"Good night," he replied, stifling a yawn, his eyes sliding shut.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** Again, thanks for all the great reviews, story alerts, favorites. :D Haven't yet replied, but we will! Just wrapping up our dmhgficexchange entry. :) We'll post it here once we're allowed to post it. Also, this chapter is a little on the short side, but we hope you guys like it anyway.

**Chapter 10**

The next morning was Saturday, so neither Draco nor Hermione set their alarms. Hermione woke up to the sound of even breathing right by her ear.

_Ralph_, she thought, her eyes still closed. She sighed in contentment, deliciously warm under the blankets. Then she froze and opened her eyes, becoming slightly more aware of her surroundings.

Ralph was at the Potters'.

It was Draco's arm that was around her, his chest she was currently pressed against, his chin she had tucked her head under, his hip that her hand was resting on.

It was Draco.

Instinctively, Hermione shoved him away and sat up, her heart racing. She checked the clock as Draco groaned.

"It's still early," he grumbled, rolling onto his side of the bed and covering his face with a pillow.

They were relatively in the middle of the bed, so Hermione couldn't yell at Draco for crossing the boundary onto her side. Somewhat shaken, she got out of bed. "I'm just going to the loo," she said, as Draco stirred again. "Go back to sleep."

Hermione went to the bathroom and closed the door, and then sighed and leaned against it. She didn't know why it was such a shock to wake up to find Draco's arms around her, and hers around him. It was a vivid reminder of the previous night, when Hermione had realized that she didn't hate Draco after all. When she had felt that spark that was lacking with Ron, although it wasn't so much a spark as a raging conflagration that had scared her as much as it thrilled her.

She finished her business in the bathroom and crept to her closet, looking for her previous journals. She wanted to read how it had all begun.

It was just past seven when Hermione unearthed her old journal, and on weekends, they usually breakfasted at eight. She left the room and closed the door quietly, deciding to go to the library for some solitude.

Hermione found the proper entry, dated June 16.

_Dear Journal,_

_I can't imagine what possessed me to agree to go out with Malfoy. I suppose it's just that he keeps asking, and I feel awful saying no. I mean, he's not that awful. At least, that's what I thought when I finally gave in._

_And, let's face it, I haven't been on a proper date in ages._

_He stopped by my office again today- the first time in two or three weeks. I think maybe that did it. In those weeks I had time to think, and (dare I say it?) time to miss him. I wondered if that last time he came by had been the last I'd ever see of him. I thought maybe he'd never ask me out again, and I'd always wonder what would have happened had I said yes. I wondered what it would be like to go out with him. I wondered if that was the last time anyone would ever ask me out._

_So when he asked me today, I agreed. We'll go out on Friday night. I don't think I'll tell Harry, Ron or Ginny yet. I'm sure they'd be angry, and anyway, it's just one date._

_-Hermione_

Four pages later was her entry about the date itself. Hermione eagerly started reading, noticing that her penmanship that evening had been slightly less legible than usual.

_Dear Journal,_

_Tonight was our date. It was better than I expected, honestly. I thought one of us would end up walking out on the other, but we lasted the entire evening. That's not to say it wasn't just a little surreal, going on a date and actually enjoying myself with __Draco Malfoy__._

_To start with, he picked me up here at the flat. I think he was more nervous than I was, and I asked him about it. He said he wanted everything to be perfect. So Malfoy __can__ be sweet, after all._

_We watched The Magician, an exhibition of different wand tricks. Not the usual, practical spells that most wizards use everyday, but conjuring and charms tricks. I particularly liked it when he made what looked like a forest made of bubbles on the stage. His fireworks were no match for the Weasley's Wildfire Whizbangs, though._

_Afterwards we had dinner in The Black Cat. The food was delicious. Draco tried to convince me to dance afterwards, but I declined. I can't dance to save my life. The only time I tried- the Yule Ball- left me with bad memories._

_Anyway, dinner was nice. We talked about a lot of things. I never knew he attended Healer lessons for two months, before deciding it wasn't the job for him. I can't believe he lasted two months- I could have told him he wasn't fit for it! I can't imagine him being nice and patient to those poor sick people. Then again, I suppose I have to admit it was nice of him to try it._

_After dessert, he brought me home, and asked me out again. I admit, I hesitated before answering. After all, what was one good date compared to the rest of our history? Still, I decided to give it a shot. He seemed sincere, so now I have another date lined up on Sunday night._

_Should I tell the others already? No, it's only two dates. And besides, they don't need to know everything._

Hermione hastily skimmed to the bottom of the entry and then shut the journal when she saw the library door open. Draco came in, looking cheerful.

"Breakfast time," he announced, "and no need to listen to the dreams of a three year old. I swear, it's not normal for him to be so eloquent. What do you read to him, the dictionary?"

"Sometimes," Hermione said glibly.

"Really?"

"How would I know?" She laughed. "You forget that I can't remember."

"Oh yeah." Draco waited for her near the door, and together they walked to their breakfast. "But it's a nice change, not having to pretend to listen."

"But when he grows up and won't talk to his dad anymore, you'll miss him."

Draco sighed and sat down. "I suppose so. But for now I won't." He helped himself to some bacon. "Do you think perhaps we've just lost our minds, driven insane by him?"

Hermione frowned at him. "Draco," she chided. "You should be happy that he's smarter than most his age."

He looked chastised. "I know, I _am _proud of him. But honestly, Hermione, he is quite a chatterbox. Does he get that from you?"

She pretended to look affronted. "Are you implying that I'm a chatterbox?"

Draco smirked. "Aren't you?"

"Maybe I was, when I was younger, but I do hope I've matured by now," Hermione returned his smirk with a smile. "Why? Were you a meek, quiet, shy little boy?"

"No," he laughed, "but I was quieter than Ralph is, I'm sure! What time do we have to pick him up, anyway?"

"Just before lunch. Harry and Ginny are expecting guests, and having three unruly children underfoot would be impossible."

"So we've got a free afternoon?" Draco chewed thoughtfully. "What do you want to do? Any place you want to go?"

"Not particularly," Hermione Summoned the Daily Prophet. "Let's see if there's anything interesting happening." She opened the paper and began browsing through it.

"Any plays?" Draco asked.

"I doubt Ralph could sit through a play," she said distractedly. "I'm not even sure he's old enough. I was thinking of perhaps an exhibit…"

Draco wrinkled his nose. "An exhibit? Doesn't that sound a bit boring?"

Hermione ignored him. "Perhaps the museum in Diagon Alley has something suitable for Ralph. Most of the exhibits are interactive, you know, so we won't be bored. You might even learn a thing or two."

"I don't know, Hermione. Doesn't it sound exactly like something you'd take Ralph to? Maybe he's been there before, and we just don't remember it."

"You're right." She sipped her coffee, which was starting to cool. "Maybe I can ask Ginny if we've been there before. If we have, we could always take Ralph to a Muggle place- Lego Land, or maybe Thorpe Park."

"Muggle?"

"Thorpe Park," Hermione said decisively, a smile crossing her face. "More for you than for Ralph, so you'll get over your silly notion that Muggles don't have any fun. I'll ask Ron to come, if you don't mind. That way he can look after Ralph while you and I go on the fun rides." She smirked.

Draco swallowed. "Fun?"

"You'll love it, I promise."

"Won't Weas- Ron- want to ride the fun rides too?"

"Don't be a spoilsport, Draco." She pouted at him. "He's been there before. Besides, why would I want to ride with Ron when I can ride with you?"

Draco raised an eyebrow, intrigued by her behaviour. "And this will be our second date?"

"My thoughts precisely."

All three Malfoys returned home that evening feeling tired but elated. Ralph was asleep in Draco's arms, and Hermione used spells to clean him rather than wake him and have Jeeves give him a proper bath.

Later, when she and Draco got ready for bed, he was still grinning. He had enjoyed himself far more than he thought he would, but it wasn't because of the rides. It was because of who he had sat beside on said rides.

"What?" Hermione asked, noticing Draco looking at her.

"Your scream sounds funny."

She threw up her hands in exasperation. "You're still on about that? You've been laughing about that for hours!"

He chuckled. "It's funny! I've never heard you scream- well, all right, so I have heard you scream before," his smile slipped as he remembered when she was tortured. "But your screams this time were different."

"You're supposed to scream at rides," Hermione said defensively, her cheeks pink. "It makes it more fun. Besides, you were screaming too."

"Only because you told me to," Draco grinned cheekily. Hermione rolled her eyes and climbed into bed beside him, grumbling under her breath. "It was fun, though," he said, turning his head to smile at her. "A nice date."

His smile made Hermione's anger disappear, and she stared at him a moment too long before forcing herself to look away. "Yeah, it was fun. We should do it again."

"Are you asking me out again?"

Hermione laughed. "You're so full of yourself." She turned off the lights and rolled onto her side, her back facing Draco. "Good-" she froze, feeling his light touch on her shoulder.

"Because if you are, my answer is yes."

She shivered, his fingers raising goosebumps on her skin. "I'll keep that in mind, if I ever decide to ask you."

"Didn't you enjoy yourself?" he asked, his voice soft.

"I- I did," Hermione faltered, her heart beating faster. She turned to look at him. "Draco, you're distracting me."

"From what?" he looked at her innocently.

"From- from sleeping," she said lamely. "I'm trying to sleep."

He chuckled. "Good night then, Hermione."

"Good night." Hermione turned over again, her shoulder still tingling. She lay awake for some time, long after Draco had fallen asleep. She listened to him breathing, cursing him for inadvertently waking her up. Eventually, Hermione sighed and sat up. "Oh, bother."

She moved over beside Draco and, being careful not to wake him up, lay down again, nestling herself in the crook of his arm. He was flat on his back, and she curled up on her side, one arm going around his waist. It _felt _right. Within a few minutes, Hermione felt herself drifting off into sleep.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** This is a looong chapter. We toyed with the idea of splitting it into two, except we might not be able to update for a week or so (perhaps Monday or Tuesday next week), so we decided to just give you guys the whole thing. :) Hope you enjoy it, quite a lot of stuff happen in this chapter! And thanks again for all the reviews/favorites/alerts for the previous chapter, they really made us smile. :)

**Chapter 11**

They were rudely awoken the next morning when Ralph ran into their room. "Morning!" he yelled, climbing up on the bed.

They jerked awake, pulling away from each other.

"What?" Draco asked groggily, staring at his son, blond hair sticking up in all directions.

"Good morning!" Ralph repeated, crawling over the sheets to give first Draco a hug, and then Hermione. "I woke up. I wanted to wake you up too."

"One day I'll slip him a sleeping potion," Draco told Hermione under his breath, before reaching out and grabbing his son. "Wanted to disturb us, did you?" he asked, tickling Ralph's stomach, and making the little boy squirm. "Think it's funny?"

Ralph couldn't answer, helpless under his father's attack. "Stop," he managed to say, his face turning red.

Draco stopped, and Ralph smiled up at him, breathing heavily.

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked, brushing Ralph's hair away from his face.

He nodded, then sat up. "I'm hungry."

Hermione checked the clock- it was half past seven. "All right, let's have breakfast."

"Last person to get dressed and go to breakfast is a flobberworm!" Draco shouted, climbing out of bed and dashing to his closet. Ralph yelped and jumped off the bed, running to his room.

"You two are so mature," Hermione got off the bed and hurried to her own closet, determined not to be the last one down.

The Malfoys enjoyed their breakfast, all of them being in a playful mood. Hermione sat down with Ralph afterwards and helped him practice writing his name. They took a short stroll through the gardens before lunch, all bundled up against the cold. In the afternoon, Draco entertained Ralph while Hermione took her turn looking over things for work. She gave up quickly, though, unable to concentrate, because Ralph kept running over to show her the shapes he had made with clay. She joined the two boys in modelling the clay, and together she and Draco fashioned a crude imitation of the Hogwarts school crest. They then asked Ralph which house he wanted to be in, and both were indignant when he said the yellow one, because it was the colour he liked.

"Hufflepuff!" Draco exclaimed. "No son of mine-"

"Hufflefuff!" Ralph repeated, giggling. "Hufflefuff!"

Neither Draco nor Hermione could keep a straight face, and soon all three Malfoys were cracking up. Hermione's work lay forgotten the rest of the evening.

When Monday dawned, Hermione reluctantly got out of bed- and more importantly, Draco's embrace- to face the new week. She was on her way to breakfast when she realized she hadn't made a dent in the office work she was supposed to have done over the weekend. Deciding to skip breakfast altogether to get a head start at the office, she hastily scribbled a note to Draco and left for work.

Hermione managed to finish her homework by ten o'clock, but before she could start on her regular work, Ginny arrived to gossip. Hermione wasn't particularly looking forward to their conversation- truth be told, she'd rather talk to the less-excitable Fleur about it than the redhead, but it had been Ginny who suggested the date anyway. She gazed longingly at the papers on her desk, but settled down to answer Ginny's questions.

"How was it? Ron said you two looked really comfortable with each other, but then again, he's _Ron_. So what happened?"

"It was good, I suppose, as first dates go. We had dinner, we talked, we danced."

"You danced?" Ginny squealed. "Slow dance?"

"Yes."

"This is moving so much faster than your first first date. I remember, when you described that other one to me- over a year after it happened, if I may say- it sounded like you two were so boring. Do you know what you did? You-"

"Yes, Gin, we watched The Magician. But you're right," Hermione frowned, "we are moving a bit fast. I suppose it's partly because we live together. Not to mention, we share a bed."

"Oh yeah, how's that coming along?"

"Coming along? It's the same as it was before. He has his side, I have mine." Technically, it was true. It was a lie of omission not to mention that she and Draco didn't stick to their sides, but Ginny didn't need to know that.

"Oh." The redhead sounded disappointed. "Anyway, what's this Ron said about you going to a theme park? He said you and Draco stayed together the whole time."

"Not the whole time," Hermione said defensively. A blush crept into her cheeks. "Most of the time. It was sort of our second date. Draco's just, well, so much better than I thought he'd be."

Ginny nodded approvingly. "Now that sounds more like you. When's the next date?"

"I don't know, we haven't spoken about it. I have to visit my parents next week, though."

"Have you two kissed yet?"

"Not since the one at the Burrow. Although- although I think we've come close to it," Hermione admitted, colour flaring up in her cheeks again.

"I don't think anything bad will come from you kissing him, Hermione. You've done it, like, a million times before, you just don't remember. Don't be so scared to get closer to him! You have to eventually."

"I'm not scared! I'm just taking my time. It's only been a few weeks, after all. Just over a month." As she said it, Hermione realized it had felt more like a year. "It feels like it's been longer than that."

"I can imagine," Ginny said sympathetically. She turned the conversation to other topics, including plans for George's birthday, which wasn't celebrated so much as it was attempted to be forgotten, as it was also Fred's birthday. When Hermione finally managed to get rid of her, it was close to eleven.

After an early and hasty lunch, Hermione tried to finish all she needed to in one afternoon, but her plans were yet again thwarted by an emergency staff meeting in her department. At four o'clock, she decided to owl Draco to let him know she'd be late. She didn't receive a reply, but she assumed the owl had reached him.

Draco and Ralph were halfway through dinner when she arrived home. Ralph greeted her cheerfully, and she was glad that someone seemed happy to see her. Draco wore a scowl on his face, and barely said anything throughout the rest of the meal. She only found time to confront him after she had put Ralph to bed.

"What is your problem, Draco? I told you I'd be late, didn't I? You got my owl?"

"Yes," Draco sneered. "I got your owl. Really, though, I don't know why you bothered to arrive for dinner, you should have just eaten out."

"What are you talking about?" Hermione asked angrily.

Draco rounded on her, pointing his finger accusingly. "What was it about this weekend that made you need to take a break? You left early this morning, got home late- and all the while I thought we had a good weekend. Or maybe I was the only one who thought so," he ended bitterly.

Hermione stared at him in surprise. "You think I wanted to take a break, just like you did before? We agreed that as long as we owled each other, it would be okay. Or are you the only one allowed to get home late once in a while?"

"If I remember right, you got pretty mad at me then too."

"Because you gave no warning! I wrote you this afternoon, you knew I'd be working late- what's the matter with that?"

"What's the matter? The matter is, Hermione, I thought we made progress last weekend, I thought you enjoyed it. But at the first opportunity, you escape."

It was then that Hermione saw past his anger and saw what he had been trying to hide with it- hurt. He was hurt because he thought she hadn't enjoyed their dates, because he thought she didn't want to spend more time with him. A wave of pity and annoyance washed over her. Annoyance won.

"Escape? Is that what you call it? I specifically told you in my letter that I had work to catch up on," Hermione snapped back. "Is that so hard to believe? It was precisely because I enjoyed the past few days so much that I had to work late today. I didn't get any work done last weekend, remember? First we went to that amusement park, then I helped him learn his name, then we played with the clay." To her horror, Hermione felt hot tears prick her eyes as she thought of all the reasons for the stress she had gone through that day. "I went to the office early, hoping to catch up on everything, and I almost did, except there were so many visitors and clients, and then an emergency meeting. I wanted to finish before dinner, I really tried. I worked so hard, but there was just so much to do, and when I get home to find you halfway through the only meal of the day that I thought I might eat with you and Ralph, you make me feel like I shouldn't have bothered!"

To their mutual dismay, her tears spilled over and trailed down her cheeks. She grabbed a tissue from the box she kept on her bedside table and sat down on the edge of the bed. Draco eyed her guiltily.

"I'm sorry," he said hesitantly, unused to apologizing; yet hating to see her cry. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's all right," Hermione answered quietly. "I didn't mean to cry. It's just the stress of today, and then when I got home-"

Draco crossed the room and crouched down in front of her. He took the tissue from her and wiped her cheeks with a tenderness she'd only seen him use with Ralph. "Don't cry anymore. I thought you wanted to take a break, and I know we agreed that we could, but I didn't expect you to need one after the fun of last weekend."

"I _didn't_ need one," she assured him, wiping her eyes. "I was telling the truth, I had a lot of work to do."

He brought his hand up and traced her cheek with his thumb before leaning in. Hermione, acutely aware of how awful she always looked after crying, stopped him. "Don't. I'm rather disgusting."

He chuckled softly wishing she could see how wrong she was. "No, you're not." He slipped his hand around to the back of her neck and pulled her forward so their lips met.

It was nothing like the quick kiss they'd shared at the Burrow, with everyone watching. Draco kissed her softly and slowly, caressing her lips with his until she responded, threading her fingers through his hair. He deepened the kiss, something he had wanted to do since that night at The Black Cat, when she'd danced in his arms.

Hermione closed her eyes and let herself get lost in the kiss, forgetting everything. She didn't need her memory to know that this was her husband, the only man she would ever love, and the only man she would ever want to kiss like this.

Eventually they pulled apart, both breathless. Hermione rested her forehead against his, keeping him close. She wanted to say something, but didn't know what.

Draco spoke first. "Do you remember anything?" he asked, pulling back slightly to look into her eyes.

She met his anxious gaze with a small chuckle. "No," she said, kissing him again, "but then again, I can barely_ think_ right now."

He laughed softly, then straightened up and sat on the bed beside her, one hand going to her cheek, drawing her closer. Their mouths met again, and again, and when Draco leaned backwards, Hermione followed, so that she was lying on top of him. She placed her head against his chest, feeling it rise and fall as he regained his breath.

"It's hard to believe," she said meditatively, touching her lips with one hand, "that-" Hermione stopped, blushing as she thought of what she almost gave away.

"What?" Draco asked, playing with her hair. "What's hard to believe?" he prompted, when she still didn't speak.

"Nothing."

"Hermione." Draco pushed her gently and sat up. He looked at her sternly. "Say it."

She shook her head. "I don't know how," she said truthfully, looking at him imploringly. He just raised an eyebrow and waited patiently. She sighed. "All right. It's hard to believe that… falling in- in _love_ with you could be so easy." Her fingers gripped the bedcover tightly, and she avoided his gaze.

Draco laughed lightly. "I could say the same for you."

Hermione looked at him. "You don't think we're moving too fast?"

"I don't think we have a choice," he said, shrugging. "We've been in love for the past five years. To fight it would be… futile."

"Like the sun forgetting to shine after a few days of rain," Hermione quoted Narcissa.

"Exactly." Draco smiled at her and stood up. "Will you shower first, or will I? Or together?" he looked at her suggestively.

Hermione laughed and stood up, pushing past him. "I'll go first," she said, going to her closet. "I've had a rough day. And don't you follow," she looked at him pointedly, closing the door with a huge smile on her face. It was amazing how such a rotten day could turn around completely to become one of the best days of her life.

This time, when they prepared to sleep, they snuggled quite happily together in the middle of the bed. More kissing ensued, and although Draco would have eagerly taken it several steps further, Hermione refused. She was tired, she said, and would be content to just sleep in his embrace. But she was awake long after he had fallen asleep.

Truth be told, Hermione still couldn't quite get her mind around the fact that she had carried Ralph in her womb for nine months, and given birth to him. Although she knew she wasn't a virgin, she couldn't remember ever making love with a man. She had always wanted to give herself completely to whoever she married, and she supposed she had done that. Her problem was that she couldn't remember it, so technically her mind was still stuck in that same place.

Would it help if she asked Draco if they could have a marriage ceremony again? Perhaps, but it would be too much trouble. She thought back to the kiss, and how it felt so natural. It felt _right_. And she wasn't too innocent to miss her body's reaction when they had started kissing. She blushed, remembering the not-so-foreign feeling of desire. Fingering the ring she wore, Hermione decided to just throw caution to the winds. To hell with her shyness and modesty. With that not quite comforting thought, she drifted off to sleep.

Hermione woke up the next morning to find Draco already awake, watching her. "What?" she groaned, burying her head under her pillow. Her face flamed; she felt rather self-conscious. Her hair was a mess, and she could only hope that she hadn't drooled.

Draco tugged the pillow away from her. "Good morning, sleepy head."

She grumbled and pushed her hair away from her face, looking up at him. "Good morning," she said, frowning. Then he smiled, and that was all it took- she smiled as well. "What?" she asked again, still trying to be cross.

"You're cute in the morning," he said, kissing her. Hermione ignored the possible negative meaning of his words and returned his kiss, reminding herself of her decision last night as Draco's hands caressed her body. She couldn't stop herself from stiffening slightly as his hands lightly drifted near places she wasn't quite comfortable with. Draco stilled, but to cover it Hermione twisted around to check the clock.

"We've got to get ready for work," she said, giving him a last kiss before disengaging herself from his embrace. She could see the disappointment in his eyes, and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, Draco, but it's true. Save it for tonight."

With a great groan, Draco heaved himself out of bed. "All right. You know, I hope today goes okay for you. Not as stressful, I mean. It's a bit disconcerting, watching you cry last night. I never really thought of you as the crying type."

"I am though, truth be told. Ask Harry or Ron, they'll tell you. I cry a lot."

"Oh good." Draco looked relieved. "I mean, not that I really know how to handle a crying woman, but I'm glad it's normal. I thought for a moment there that it might be hormones."

His words sunk in and Hermione flushed. "I don't think so."

"Yeah, I just thought- never mind." He jerked his head in the direction of the bathroom, and Hermione nodded and hurried in.

That awkward moment played on Hermione's mind for the rest of the morning. She remembered what Ginny had said that first day: once you see Ralph, you'll want more children. She knew she wasn't pregnant, but what if Narcissa had been right? What if they had been planning for another child? Were she and Draco ready?

She mentally berated herself for worrying too much. There were things that needed her immediate attention at the office, and it would be best for her to devote her time in dealing with those instead. She managed to concentrate fairly well until after lunch, when her secretary knocked on her door.

"You've got a delivery from Mr. Malfoy's office."

"Send it in, please," Hermione replied, signing one last document before looking up to see what she had received. A bouquet of flowers was thrust through the door, although the bearer remained hidden. Hermione laughed. "I know it's you, Draco, I recognize your watch!"

With a sheepish grin, Draco came forward. "I should have held it in my other hand." He closed the door behind him, and Hermione stood up to meet him in the middle of the room.

"This is a nice surprise," she said, giving him a light kiss. "Are you here on official business?"

"As a matter of fact, yes. There were some documents to be submitted, and I volunteered. I made a quick detour, though, to pick these up." He held up the flowers and set them down on a clear spot on her desk. Draco slipped his arms around her waist and drew her closer. "Not too busy, are you?"

"Only a little."

"Well, I was rather bored at the office, and I thought, why not pay you a visit? Make sure you're not bored either."

"I wasn't, actually. Until you came, that is."

"Cheeky," he told her, pulling away in mock hurt. Then he grinned and kissed her. "I've honestly been thinking about you all day, and how we can make our pesky son sleep early tonight so we can move on to more interesting activities."

Hermione blushed. "Don't call him pesky." She tilted her head upwards, looking for another kiss.

The door swung open and she and Draco broke apart. Ginny stood in the doorway, looking far from embarrassed. "Oh, it's so sweet of you to drop by, Draco! I hope I'm not interrupting."

Draco glared at her. "What do you think?"

Ginny ignored him and looked at her blushing friend. "Hermione, we've got to talk when he leaves."

"In that case, I'm not leaving," Draco said stubbornly.

"Ginny," Hermione said finally, "I hate to be blunt, but yes, you were interrupting, and we'd appreciate it if you could give us some privacy."

Ginny sighed. "Fine. But George said he and Lee have made some progress with an antidote- they'll test it tomorrow. If it works, you two will have your memories back in a week!"

"That's great, Gin. I actually haven't been able to do much research of my own," Hermione said, biting her lip guiltily. "Do they still need help?"

"I don't know," Ginny shrugged. "I suppose they'll sort it out soon enough, even without your help. Merlin knows you've got enough on your plate."

"How are they planning on testing the antidote?" Hermione asked. Beside her, Draco made an impatient sound, which she ignored.

"I don't know exactly," Ginny said. "I'm sure they've figured something out. If you want to ask them, go ahead."

Hermione glanced at Draco, who had gone to the charmed window and was looking at the weather outside, his back turned to her. "Maybe I will drop by one time," she decided, looking back at Ginny. "I can find George at the shop?"

"Right above it," Ginny affirmed. She snuck a look at Draco, who was drumming his fingers against the windowsill. "I'd better be going."

Draco immediately perked up and whirled around, returning to Hermione's side. "I suppose we'll be seeing you soon."

"You could at least act like you're going to miss me, you know," Ginny said, grinning impishly at him. She took a step back and pretended to study them. "You two really _do_ look so good together," she stated, turning to leave. "Bye!"

Once Ginny closed the door, Hermione looked at Draco. "Of all the impudent things to say," she murmured, blushing. She went to her desk and picked up the flowers. She conjured a vase and almost dropped it when Draco's arms snaked around her waist. "Draco-"

"I happen to agree with her." His voice was soft and deep, and Hermione's breath caught in her throat. He kissed her cheek, and then her shoulder. Hermione fumbled with the vase, putting it on the desk.

"Don't," she said, leaning against him nonetheless. She brought a hand up to cup his face as he bent his head to kiss her neck. "Not in my office."

Draco chuckled, obediently drawing back and turning her around. He placed a chaste kiss on her lips instead, and looked around the room. "I wonder how many times we've done it here," he mused.

Hermione turned crimson. "None," she said firmly, although she was far from certain.

"Your secretary seemed to know me awfully well," Draco smirked at her discomfort. "I must come here quite often."

"Maybe _she_'s the one you've done here," Hermione retorted, moving away from him and sitting down.

He laughed. "Maybe." He sat down across from her. "It doesn't say in your journal?"

"No."

"Pity. I wonder how often you visit _my _office…"

Hermione blushed again. "It's no use speculating," she said, wanting to change the subject. "Why are you here, again? Some documents?"

"I've already dropped them off upstairs. I just came to visit you."

"And tease me mercilessly and make me extremely uncomfortable, is that right?"

"It is fun," he agreed. She glared at him, and he laughed. "All right, I missed you, that's all."

Hermione looked troubled. "But we just saw-"

"Did you miss me?"

She hesitated.

"Be honest, Hermione. I don't care if you say you didn't, as long as you're honest. I can't blame you."

"If by missing you, you mean that I could hardly wait to go home and see you again- then I guess yes, I did miss you," Hermione smiled shyly and looked at him. He looked pleased. "But isn't this going rather fast?"

"You're still fighting it," Draco said, leaning back in his seat, stretching his legs in front of him. "You're thinking too much about time, about falling in love. Just accept that we've been in love for years, and everything seems easier."

"It's hard to do."

"Only because you're still thinking. Although I suppose it _would_ be easier for me than for you," he said thoughtfully.

"Because you don't think as much?"

"Because I fell in love with you first."

"Oh." Hermione looked sheepish.

"And I didn't go from hating you to loving you. I think I rather admired you, even before I came into your office that fateful day."

They were quiet for a few moments, before Hermione broke the silence. "I wish I could remember it."

"Don't worry, it wasn't as romantic as love at first sight, or anything." Hermione rather thought that falling in love with someone and overcoming years of hatred and prejudice was more romantic than love at first sight, but she didn't say anything. Draco stood up. "I'd better leave, before you ask me if I haven't got anything better to do. I can see you're busy." He eyed the papers on her desk.

"You aren't?" Hermione stood up as well, feeling somewhat disappointed that he was leaving.

"Not very," he said. "I told you, I was bored. In fact, I'll probably go home and play with Ralph- tire him out so he sleeps early." He grinned wickedly.

She approached him, smirking. "I'll see you tonight, then." She stood on tiptoe to kiss him, and his arms automatically went around her back, holding her closer.

"Get back to work," he told her, pulling back slightly, but not letting her go. "One might think you were procrastinating." He kissed her again before releasing her, and left her staring after him, trying to form a coherent thought.

Giving up, Hermione went back to her desk and stared contemplatively at the flowers before resuming her work. Her heart thumped almost painfully in her chest- she wondered if she could plead arrhythmia and leave work early. That would make Draco happy.

The thought made her smile.

**End A/N: **Reactions? Comments? What do you guys think?


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Yay, a new chapter. :D After this, we believe there are only 2 to go. It's almost over! Again, a HUGE thank you to everyone who reviews- especially to those who review every chapter- it's always a pleasure reading your comments and opinions. :) Thank you so much! This chapter is a little serious, as Draco and Hermione have to sort out more issues- we hope you guys enjoy it anyway!

**Chapter 12**

When Hermione woke up the next morning, she felt much like she had on the first morning of waking up beside Draco, minus the headache. She blushed, remembering the night's bedroom activities.

She turned her head to look at Draco, who was sleeping on his stomach, one arm flung in her direction. He had been understanding and, in Hermione's opinion, inordinately pleased and smug to find out that he had been her first. It had helped him understand her reluctance to sleep with him, and he'd been considerate and had taken things slowly- the first time. All in all, it had been one of the best nights of Hermione's life.

She checked the clock- it was still early. A persistent, nagging feeling inside her kept asking her if it was too soon to have slept with Draco, whom she had really only known for over a month. Whom she could only _remember_ knowing for over a month, she reminded herself sternly. There was a great difference between the two situations. Draco had told her not to think about it, and to just accept it, and Hermione was trying. She was trying her best, but sometimes she couldn't help feeling that it wasn't her life she was living.

"Do you regret it?" Draco's soft voice broke through her musings. He had woken up and was watching her, reading quite accurately the conflicting emotions on her face. "Last night?"

Hermione turned on her side to face him, and smiled. "No, I don't," she said truthfully. "It felt right."

"But?"

She looked sheepish. "But I just can't help thinking that-"

"Ah," he sighed, "thinking."

Hermione glared at him. "We're not all as adept as you are at turning our brains off."

"Believe it or not, people do it all the time," he said, irritation flashing across his face. "It's called feeling. You just let go of logic and feel whatever you feel at the moment."

"So if I feel like jumping off a cliff, I should?" she countered.

"I don't mean that you should act without thinking," Draco retorted. "Just consider your feelings, not just your thoughts, when you make a decision. Think and feel, just not at the same time, or they'll interfere with each other. How can you think clearly if you're too emotional? How can you feel properly if you're too logical?"

Hermione still glared at him. "Thank you for your advice, oh wise one. But I have to think. It's how I live."

"If you keep thinking, you keep remembering. If you, five years ago, kept thinking about the horrible things we did to each other at school, how did you ever fall in love with me? You must have decided to feel instead." He gave her a small grin. "I bet you fought it then too."

"I bet I did." She frowned. "Ginny asked me if I wouldn't feel stupid once we get our memories back and I still insist that I can't love you." She sighed. "I suppose I would."

"I know I would. I'd feel downright foolish that I probably promised to love you forever and then, when forced to start over, I found I couldn't do it." He sounded slightly bitter.

"It just takes me a bit more time," Hermione said, annoyed. "And what's happened to you, anyway? Why don't you hate Muggleborns anymore?"

Draco shrugged. "It's your fault. No one who's known you for as long as I have can possibly go on believing that Muggleborns are inferior, you know. You're living proof against all the crap I was led to believe."

Hermione smiled slightly, pleased. "Really?"

"I hated you for it, at first. But then I came to admire you. Never thought I'd marry you, of course." He reached over and brushed her hair back from her face. "And now, even though my memories tell me otherwise, I feel happy when I'm with you. I love you, and I don't want to stop loving you. I think that even if I lost my memory a hundred times, I'd always eventually still love you."

"You're like Narcissa, then," Hermione said. "But that's a rather strong sentiment, isn't it? You can't be sure of that."

"It's what I _feel_."

"I thought you said that's what you think."

"Then it's both," Draco said crossly. "Which means I'm probably right."

Hermione rolled her eyes.

Draco frowned. "What is your problem this morning? Why are you in such a rotten mood? I thought we took a step in the right direction, but we're back to fighting."

She shrugged evasively. "It's what we do, Draco. You and I. We fight."

"That's the stupidest argument I've ever heard. So the next time I'm a grouch, I'll just say 'this is what we do, Hermione. We fight.'"

She stayed silent, so he pressed on. "Honestly, Hermione, what's wrong?"

"It's not like you're in the best of moods this morning," she shot back.

"You started it!"

"_You_ started it, with your 'ah, thinking' comment."

"Well, it's your fault for thinking, then," Draco snapped, frustrated. "You said you 'didn't regret it, _but_'. Honestly, it's like you're not trying."

Hermione flushed. "You find this so easy, don't you? All we had to do was go on a date, dance, kiss, and have sex, and everything's all right, isn't it? Problem solved. Back to normal."

"I never said that."

"It's just-" her breath caught in her throat, and she wanted to cry with frustration. "You seem to have accepted this much more than I have. Why? Doesn't it bother you anymore? And why can't I accept it? I've already admitted that I love you, and I really think I do. Believe me, Draco, I wish I didn't feel this way."

Draco sighed, his anger melting away as he saw how confused Hermione was. "It does bother me," he said, moving closer and taking her hand, afraid to push her by wrapping his arms around her. "It bothers me that I can't remember you, but that's all. Everyone says we were madly in love- even my parents say so- and if that's how I feel about you now, I'm not going to fight it. It's sudden, and yes, strange to be in love with you after disliking you for as long as I can remember, but it's… it's the truth." He rubbed his thumb against her knuckles soothingly. "This is how I try to see it- we were in love, have temporarily forgotten our relationship, but we're still together. That's basically what it is, although it doesn't seem that way; to us, it seems like we were never together to begin with. But we were, and that's what I tell myself."

Hermione's fingers tightened against his, and she drew a shaky breath. "It makes sense," she said quietly, her eyes still bright with frustration, "but why can't I accept it as easily as that?" She closed her eyes, and the tears began to fall.

Draco wiped her cheeks and pulled her closer, this time wrapping his arms around her. "I don't know," he said honestly. "Maybe it's just not your way, and you'll have to explain differently to yourself. I'm sorry for being impatient, for rushing you. And for saying that you're not trying. I know you are."

She smiled shakily. "Sometimes everything seems right. Other times, I feel like- like I'm living someone else's life," she confessed. "This isn't quite the life I imagined for myself- it's better, actually- and you're not the person I expected to fall in love with."

"I feel like that sometimes," Draco admitted. "Especially when Ralph is around. You've accepted him more than I have. I still feel awkward when he's with us."

"But you're such a good father. You spend lots of time with him. He loves riding on your shoulders. He loves you. Not just who you used to be, but you, _now_."

He gave a crooked smile. "Thank you. That means a lot to me."

"What was Lucius like?"

"He was great. I don't remember ever playing zoom and whoosh with him," Draco grinned, "but we would do other things together. We'd go flying, play chess, Exploding Snap, poker, all sorts of games. He was always busy, but he'd make time for me. That's why whenever I disappointed him, I felt horrible about myself."

"A lot of people used to say that he put too much pressure on you."

"He expected a lot from me, and I didn't deliver. There was a time when we did grow distant," Draco said, frowning slightly. "That was during the war. He couldn't talk about what the Dark Lord was planning, and that was all he could think about. After the war, however, we became closer than ever."

"What did you think though, about him supporting Voldemort?"

He bit the inside of his cheek, annoyed at her questions, but trying not to show it. "It would be hypocritical of me to say he was wrong, since I was one of the Dark Lord's servants too. At first, I was proud of him, even though the Dark Lord seemed rather evil. But like I said, I adored Father. I was eager to please him. But when I needed to do something, I couldn't. I found out that Father was… mistaken about the Dark Lord. Father realized that as well, but we were in too deep to get out. We were relieved when Harry finally won."

Hermione stayed silent, thinking. "There's so much I don't know about you," she finally said. "Maybe that's my problem."

"You don't trust me." The revelation hit Draco like a punch in the gut. "And with good reason, I suppose," he added, thinking of the Dark Mark on his arm.

"It's not that," she hastened to reassure him. "I just don't know everything about you. I'm sure I would have asked you about everything before marrying you," she said with a smile.

"True." He frowned slightly. "Why don't I feel the need to know everything about you?"

Hermione shrugged. "There's nothing to know. You already know about the war, and the rest, which is basically my job, we already spoke about on our first date."

"I suppose your theory makes sense," he concluded, after considering it. "But you can see that my family and I aren't what you expected."

"I know. And I wouldn't have married you if I had my doubts. I trust you, Draco," she said, leaning forward to kiss his lips. "I just don't know you that well."

"So how will we fix this problem?" His arms tightened around her, and he returned her kiss, making it far less chaste than the one she had given him.

"I don't know," Hermione said breathlessly, once she had pulled back.

"What?"

She giggled. "The problem. You asked how we would fix it."

"Oh, right." He grinned. "I've no idea."

"Just figuring out what the problem was made me feel better," she said. "I'll just ask you if I think of any questions."

"All right." Draco kissed her again, then looked up to check the time. "Damn," he swore. "We should start waking up earlier, so we can actually get something accomplished before work."

"Hard to do when we sleep so late," Hermione murmured, her lips busy against his neck.

"Hermione-"

There was a sharp knock on the door, before it was unceremoniously flung open. Draco groaned again as Hermione disentangled herself from his arms.

"Good morning, Ralph! You're up early."

"I woke up and couldn't sleep. I'm cold." He climbed up onto the bed and between his parents. Hermione thanked Merlin that she had the foresight to erase all traces of the previous night's activities with Draco. She hugged Ralph under the covers.

"Better?"

Ralph nodded but wriggled out of her grasp. "You're squishing me."

Hermione laughed and stood up, heading for her wardrobe. "Okay then, you stay here first, I have to get ready for work. You can sleep again, if you want."

"I'm hungry." To prove his point, his stomach made a gurgling sound.

Draco chuckled. "That's funny." He stopped laughing when he saw a cold glare directed at him. He glanced at Hermione, but she was heading for the bathroom, so he looked back at Ralph.

"Stop making fun of me."

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Aren't you grumpy today? What happened?"

"I had a bad dream last night, and Jeeves said I couldn't see you! I wanted to! Why couldn't I?"

"Because we were sleeping," Draco lied, glad that his son couldn't read his mind. "You can't always get what you want, but I'm sorry about last night."

The glare softened into a pout, and a sniffle.

"Are you still angry?" Draco asked.

"No."

"Good. Now go back to sleep, you're probably tired from waking up last night. No more scary dreams." He planted a kiss on Ralph's forehead and settled down to wait for his turn in the bathroom. When Hermione stepped out, he carefully rolled off the bed. "He's cranky because he had a nightmare last night, and Jeeves wouldn't let him disturb us," he told her quietly.

Hermione blushed. "Jeeves knew?" she whispered.

"Be glad that he did, or Ralph would have come in. I'm sure the elves know everything that goes on in this house."

She glanced over at the bed. "He's spending the afternoon at Molly's, today. Hopefully he cheers up."

"I won't be having dinner here, remember? I have that business dinner with that guy from Finland. Why don't you and Ralph eat at the Burrow?"

"Maybe." She gave Draco a coy smile. "I'll see you at breakfast- I have a huge appetite and I blame you."

Draco smirked. "Blame me all you want, but that won't stop me from doing it again tonight." He pulled her to him and kissed her soundly.

"Looking forward to it," Hermione murmured, before stepping out of his reach and walking over to Ralph. She smoothed his hair gently and kissed his cheek, then headed for breakfast. She made sure Jeeves knew to bring Ralph to the Burrow, and to tell him she'd pick him up after work.

At the office, Hermione kept glancing at her watch, wondering distractedly how Ralph was doing. She still wasn't quite comfortable dealing with him when he was in one of his tempers. At half-five, she rushed off to the Burrow, eager to see him.

"Hi Molly," she said, as soon as Mrs. Weasley opened the door. "How's everything?"

"Come in, come in," Molly replied, stepping aside to let her pass. "Everything's just fine, he's with James, they're playing with their trucks out in the back."

"I hope Ralph wasn't any trouble? He was in a bad mood when I left this morning."

"A little bit cranky, but when James arrived he seemed to cheer up. I think he was just tired. You know how young children are. You don't have to leave immediately, do you? I've just made tea."

"Some tea would be lovely," Hermione replied. She peeked out of the kitchen window to see the two boys playing. "Where's Lily?"

"Setting up a tea party for them in the living room."

Hermione shook her head and sat at the table, gratefully accepting a steaming cup from Molly. "I don't know how you do it," she confessed. "You manage to keep three very active children happy and safe."

Molly chuckled. "It just takes practice, dear. And Merlin knows that after the twins, most other children are easy to handle. You wouldn't believe the things those two got up to." Her eyes grew suspiciously moist, and Hermione knew she was thinking of Fred.

"Molly-" she began, reaching for the older woman's hand.

Molly shook her head. "I'm fine, dear. I can talk about him. I was just thinking about what you said. A mother can't keep them 'safe' forever." She sighed. "It's such a blessing having George, of course. Although I still can't believe he erased your memory like that!" Hermione smiled, seeing the transformation from grief to indignation. "That was too much!"

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions," Hermione quoted.

"That's true. Although I swear, those two were scheming since they were in diapers!" Molly regaled Hermione with several anecdotes of Fred and George's mischief, giving Ralph and James enough time to enjoy Lily's tea party.

After Draco had returned from his dinner and Ralph had been put to bed, Hermione called her parents to remind them that she and Ralph were visiting them the next day. Once she had set down the phone, she sighed and turned to her husband. "I wish we didn't have to tell them."

"Maybe our memory will return by tomorrow," Draco said hopefully. "How is the antidote coming along?"

Hermione had visited George's laboratory earlier that day, during her lunch break. She frowned. "It's not. Their attempt didn't work. Neither George nor Lee can remember what they've forgotten."

"What went wrong?"

"They probably didn't put enough powdered unicorn horn," she said. "It needs to be stronger. And I have no idea why they felt the need to put in some ginseng. It's supposed to be good for memory, but not magically-induced memory loss. Anyway, I gave them a recipe they could try. I'm not sure if it will work, though."

"It probably has a better chance of working than theirs," Draco said, turning on their television. It was a new addition to his parents' bedroom, and Hermione had taught him how to use it a few days before. He stretched out on the bed to watch. "The longer they take, the less likely it is that we'll remember everything, right?"

Hermione nodded. "If only we could find the trigger," she said, sitting down beside him.

"Maybe childbirth," he said, looking up at her teasingly. "Should I get you pregnant again?"

"It might work for me, but what about yourself?" Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Should I try getting _you_ pregnant as well?"

"How will you do that?" he laughed.

She reached for her wand. "I'll start by removing the bits that aren't necessary."

"I was joking," Draco said defensively, rolling onto his stomach.

Hermione smirked. "So was I."

He waited until she had put down her wand before turning over onto his back. "It's Mr. Bean," he said, glancing at the TV. "He's hilarious." Hermione smiled at his enthusiasm for Muggle comedy and settled down beside him to watch.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** Oops, posting this a day later than intended. This is the second to last chapter! We know some of you- maybe most of you- were surprised when we announced that there would be two chapters left. We suppose you know what that means- either they remember soon, or they don't. (Haha, how cryptic). Thanks again for all the reviews- we hit 200 with that last chapter, which is something we hadn't imagined before. :) Haven't replied to them yet, but will do. :D You guys are awesome!

**Chapter 13**

Draco woke up to an empty bed on Thursday morning. He frowned, sitting up. The bathroom door was open, showing it was unoccupied.

"I'm here," Hermione said from the window seat, where she was vigorously writing on a piece of parchment.

"Work?" Draco asked. He hadn't realized she was busy.

"Not really," she said, putting down the pen and parchment and making her way over to the bed. "I just needed to let out some of my thoughts." She took a deep breath. "I'm nervous about seeing my parents later. Sometimes I think we shouldn't tell them. I mean, things are going so well, it's almost like we haven't forgotten." Draco stayed quiet, knowing there was a 'but' on it' way. Hermione let out a frustrated sigh. "But then I think about my promise to myself not to leave them out of my life anymore. And I know that telling them is the right thing to do."

Draco gave her a reassuring smile- at least, he hoped it was reassuring, as he wasn't quite used to giving comfort and had no idea how to go about doing it- and motioned her closer. Wordlessly, she sat down beside him and he put his arm around her, gently turning her head so he could kiss her lips. "You'll do fine. Merlin, Hermione, you've faced You-Know-Who, haven't you? Led the resistance, and everything? Faced _my_ parents?"

"Who turned out to be perfectly lovely people," she pointed out.

"But you didn't know it at the time. Besides, I'm sure your parents are perfectly lovely people as well." Draco grimaced. "Don't let my father catch you calling him 'perfectly lovely', by the way. I doubt he'd take it as a compliment."

"He would, but he'd hide it very well." Hermione grinned. Then she frowned. "Hey, you're changing the topic. We were talking about _my_ parents."

Draco smirked. "I'm distracting you. I can think of other ways..." he trailed off as he leaned in to kiss her. She allowed his kisses for a few moments, before pulling away.

"I don't want to be distracted, Draco, I want to talk about this." Hermione had never been one to willingly distract herself; not when she had a problem to analyze. Harry had once said she'd be able to think herself out of a corner should she ever paint herself into one.

"Talking's overrated," he murmured, trying again.

"Draco."

"What?"

"You're not helping," she said, slightly frustrated.

"I don't know _how_ to help you, Hermione!" he snapped, suddenly irritated, and not a little hurt that she kept pushing him away. "You know I'm no good at comforting people, I have no bloody clue what to say to you. I apologize for stupidly trying to distract you and for thinking it might actually help," he said sarcastically.

"All you have to do is listen!" Hermione cried exasperatedly. "Just listen to me, Draco, is that so-"

"Just listen?" he interrupted skeptically. "Listen and watch while you begin to cry, you mean."

"I'm not crying!"

"You will. Girls always do. You said yourself that you cry easily. Go have a good sob session with Ginny, for all I care."

"Selfish bastard," Hermione seethed, standing up and clenching her fists. It wouldn't do for Ralph to see his father with a big red handprint on his cheek. "All I ask is that you listen and provide a little bit of feedback, but all you care about is getting your morning shag."

Draco stood up as well, towering over her. "I was trying to help you!" he shouted furiously. "I never _thought _you'd prefer to worry about something that probably won't be as bad as you think it will be!"

"Even if it won't be that bad, I'm _worried_ about it so the least you could do is be sympathetic!" Hermione yelled back.

"Well how about this? I'm NOT! I think it's pointless to worry about it, and that you're being stu-"

"I'm not being stupid, you arrogant git!_ You're_ being selfish, hard-headed, and hard-hearted." She Summoned her clothes and strode into the bathroom. "Let me know when you're ready to talk."

"Only when you're ready to be reasonable!" Draco shot back. He grabbed his own clothes and, fuming, went to use another bathroom. He couldn't believe Hermione had accused him of just wanting sex. He had honestly, _honestly_ been trying to help her, and that was all the thanks he got for his effort. Was that what she thought of him?

Breakfast was a strained affair. Ralph talked quite happily about seeing his grandparents, while his parents glared at each other over their coffee mugs. They both lingered over their coffee, neither wanting to be accused of 'running away', until Hermione realized she only had ten minutes to get to the office. Cursing her husband, she raced upstairs to brush her teeth, while Draco gave Ralph a lecture on the perks of owning your company.

The row lasted the entire day. At lunch, Hermione Flooed Jeeves to instruct him to have Ralph ready by the time she got off from work, so that they could go straight to her parents' house. She didn't want to risk bumping into Draco at the Manor, in case he returned before going off to meet his friends. If Hermione was being honest she would have said that her anger with Draco served to dilute her anxiety, but it didn't improve her mood. It was with extreme effort that she pulled herself together. She was only seeing her parents, after all.

As with many things in life, what Hermione had been dreading and agonizing over turned out to be much more enjoyable than she had expected. They greeted her warmly, although she could detect a hint of concern in their looks. As soon as she could manage it, Mrs. Granger got Hermione alone so they could talk openly without Ralph listening. She led her daughter to the kitchen to help with dinner.

"All right, dear, what did you want to talk to us about?"

Hermione took a deep breath. "Over a month ago, now, Draco and I woke up, and we..." She paused and swallowed hard, noticing the look of concern on her mother's face. "We couldn't remember being married. We remembered each other from school, but we couldn't remember being in love. We had lost that part of our memories."

Whereas Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy had burst out laughing, Mrs. Granger gasped in shock. "But you hated each other in school!"

"And we woke up hating each other. I went to Harry's house and spoke to Ginny, and she told me we had been married for years- I thought we had gotten drunk and had ended up..." Hermione coughed suddenly, her face bright red at what she had almost revealed to her mother. "I mean, I didn't know what to think. Then Ginny told me about Ralph- and Merlin, I feel so horrible, forgetting my son."

To her credit, Mrs. Granger made no reference to the few months when she had forgotten her daughter. Instead, she asked, "But what happened? Why did you lose your memory?"

"At Harry and Ginny's anniversary party, Draco and I were arguing about something, and George slipped us each a potion that was supposed to make us forget what we had been arguing about," Hermione explained. "It reacted with the alcohol we were drinking, and ended up making us forget our entire marriage." She grimaced and shook her head. "He hasn't been able to come up with an antidote yet. Draco and I kept hoping the problem would resolve on its own, and that's why I hadn't told you yet, but I... I didn't want to shut you out of my life again."

"Oh, Hermione." Mrs. Granger embraced her daughter. "You did what you thought was best." Hermione hugged her mother, tears welling in her eyes.

"It's so hard, so frustrating," she confessed in a small voice. "It's hard to pretend that everything is normal, but we have to, for Ralph's sake. I'm not sure if he knows something is wrong. And sometimes it just doesn't feel real. How can I have a son? How can I have raised him to be the wonderful little boy that he is? _Me_! I'm no mother."

"No one is born a mother," Mrs. Granger pointed out, the corners of her lips turning upwards in a wry smile. "You became one when you had Ralph, and then you learned how to be a good- _great_- mother, and learning is something you do extremely well."

Hermione stayed quiet, accepting the comfort she found in her mother's words. She knew they were true.

"How are you and Draco getting along?" Mrs. Granger asked curiously.

Hermione chuckled a bit, pulling out of her mother's arms to wipe some tears that had escaped. "It was awful, in the beginning. We hated each other. We both believed we were insane to have married each other, and that we were most likely on the brink of a divorce anyway... We didn't even share a bedroom. But neither of us could sleep properly, so eventually I moved back into the bedroom, and it worked." She outlined the rest of the story to her mother, hesitating as she reached the end, unsure how to describe the current state of affairs. "He's accepted it more easily than I have, but I'm getting there. It's been a bit of a rollercoaster." She shook her head. "We fought this morning, though. It was pretty horrible." She cringed, remembering some of the things they had said to each other.

Mrs. Granger laughed. "You always fight, and you always say that. I'm glad not everything has changed." Her eyes flicked to the clock on the wall, and she started. "Oh dear, we'd better start serving dinner. Ralph must be starving. Let's continue this after we eat."

The meal passed smoothly, with Mrs. Granger helping Hermione field the questions Mr. Granger asked about the details of her life, as he didn't yet know that she had lost her memory. Hermione longed to ask her parents how it had happened that they had forgiven her so completely, but she supposed it had to do with time, as much as with Ralph and Draco. Her parents adored Ralph and, much to Hermione's surprise, seemed to like Draco much more than she had expected. They seemed to appreciate him for being the man who did the unexpected and not only married their daughter, but had also given them a grandson.

"Do you know if you and Draco have discussed Ralph's schooling?" Mrs. Granger asked her daughter as they tidied up after the meal.

"I don't think we have," Hermione said, searching her memory. "We've both had a lot on our minds."

"Well, you need to decide soon, dear," Mrs. Granger said. "Ralph is certainly old enough for a playschool."

"Yes, that's true." Hermione frowned, suddenly annoyed at herself for not knowing her and Draco's plans for Ralph's future. "I suppose he'll study in a nursery for now."

"As far as I know, Draco wants him to be home-schooled, like most wizarding children. He says it's very difficult for them to mix with regular children without giving away that their parents are magical."

"I'll talk to him about it," she promised.

"Do that. Although maybe you should wait until he's in a good mood."

Hermione chuckled. "I could be waiting for a _long_ time."

Draco wasn't yet home when Hermione and Ralph got back to the Manor. She hadn't expected him to be, as he had cleared his schedule for the next day so that all his meetings would be in the afternoon, indicating that he meant to come in late. Hermione helped Ralph shower and prepare for bed, after which she read him Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump and The Wizard and the Hopping Pot. Once he was asleep, she readied her files for her meeting the next day and got herself ready for an early night in, having gotten little sleep the night before.

She woke up a few hours later, and saw a tiny sliver of light from under the bathroom door. The sound of the shower confirmed that Draco was inside. She lit her wand and checked the time- one in the morning. Not too bad, she supposed. She tried to go back to sleep, but found that she was now waiting for his return.

After what felt like ages, the shower finally turned off. A few more minutes passed with Hermione still turning restlessly, trying to get comfortable. The light turned off just as the door opened, and Draco paused.

"Hermione?"

"Mm." She still wasn't sure if they were friends or not.

"Did I wake you up?" he asked, his voice a whisper as he made his way to the bed.

"I woke up while you were in the shower. Couldn't sleep again."

One side of the bed sank as Draco lay down. "Sorry."

"It's not your fault." She paused, her sleep-fogged mind trying to figure out if he was apologizing for waking her up or for their fight that morning. She asked him.

"Both, I suppose," he replied after a while.

"I'm sorry, too," she said. He nodded. They lay quietly for a while, until Hermione asked, "how did your dinner go?"

"It was great. Good to be back with the old crowd," Draco said. "And yours?"

"It went well. Better than I had thought. My parents seem to love you."

"Like my parents love you," he smiled. "Let's sleep, Hermione. You've got an early meeting tomorrow." He reached over and pulled her closer, and she willingly curled herself into his embrace, breathing in his freshly-showered scent.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N:** And so we've come to the end of the story! We feel kind of sad about it, because you guys have been such awesome reviewers- indeed, some of you are more like friends! Thank you so much for following our fic, and for reviewing and favoriting it. We hope you enjoy this chapter, and the fic in general!

**Chapter 14**

It was only on Sunday that Hermione remembered what she and her mother had been discussing after dinner. She brought up the topic while she and Draco were dressing for lunch at the Burrow. "Mum mentioned something about us deciding what school Ralph should go to," she said, remembering the conversation. "I don't suppose you know if we've made a decision?"

"School?" Draco frowned as he slipped on his shoes. "No, I can't remember. Why does he need to go to school?"

"For his education," Hermione looked at him in exasperation. She turned back to the mirror, brushing her hair. "He can't know nothing when he goes to Hogwarts."

"Most wizarding children are home-schooled." He checked his reflection in the mirror and went to wait for her by the door.

"And who'll teach him?" She remembered Mrs. Granger telling her Draco's opinion on the subject.

Draco shrugged. "There are plenty of available tutors."

"He'll learn academically, but he won't learn how to interact with others," Hermione said, setting down her brush and picking up her purse. "Children need to be with other children."

"There are more than enough children for him to play with. Hermione, it's custom," he said, opening the door and following her out of the room. "That's the way it's traditionally done."

"I don't give a damn how it's usually done," she said fiercely. "I want Ralph to go to a school, just like I did. It builds character."

"He can build it at home, like I did."

"And some character _you_ turned out to have."

"At least I had friends when I went to Hogwarts," he said nastily. "You didn't have any friends until Halloween, and then it was just two of them."

Hermione stopped short at the cruel reminder of her first two months at Hogwarts. She stared at him, hurt and anger evident on her face, completely speechless. She couldn't think of anything that could possibly, at that moment, have hurt more.

Clenching her teeth, she brushed past him and left him standing guiltily in the corridor. "Ralph, let's go," she called, entering his room. She was proud of herself; none of the anger she felt showed in her voice.

Ralph ran towards her excitedly. "I'm hungry," he announced.

"I'm sure there'll be lots of food," Hermione said, trying to smile. Her lips trembled slightly, but Ralph didn't seem to notice. He was looking behind her, to where Draco was standing.

"I'm hungry, Daddy," Ralph told him.

"We're leaving now, so you'll eat soon," Draco said distractedly, his eyes on his wife. "Hermione-"

"Later," she snapped angrily, taking Ralph's hand and leading him to the fireplace. Ralph looked shocked at the way Hermione spoke, but she held his hand gently, so he didn't say anything. Draco followed wordlessly, feeling guilty and hating it. He was right, after all. No need to feel guilty.

They arrived at the Weasleys, and Hermione immediately brought Ralph over to where the family was waiting. Draco knew she was avoiding and ignoring him, which irritated him. He scowled and stayed some distance away from the picnic tables, which were set up under a tree.

"Did you guys fight?" Ron asked, coming up behind Draco.

"She refuses to listen to reason. She thinks she's right all the time."

Ron chuckled. "She usually is. What is it this time?"

Draco shook his head. "We'll work it out." He watched Hermione, angry that she had provoked him into saying such spiteful words.

"Lunch is ready!" Mrs. Weasley called, waving them over. "Ron, Draco, what are you standing around for?"

"I'll sit with the children," Hermione offered, preparing to go with Ginny to the smaller table. Apart from his frown darkening, Draco gave no appearance of having heard her. He took a seat with the other adults, and proceeded to ignore her for the duration of the meal.

"Lily, how do you like school?" Hermione asked, directing her question to Ginny's youngest.

"It's fun!" Lily said, smiling sweetly.

"What's school?" Ralph asked.

Hermione smirked- not that Draco could see her face- and proceeded to tell Ralph all about the fun things kids did in school. Lily chipped in excitedly.

"We cooked! We made spaghetti, with cheese. It was yummy. But my friend Susan was so hungry she wanted my food. I was hungry too, but I shared with her, because Mummy and Daddy and Ms. Annie said sharing is good, and I got a gold star for sharing, and Susan got a silver star because she asked me politely."

"That sounds wonderful, Lily," Hermione said, noticing with approval that Ralph seemed interested. "Are you learning a lot?"

"Oh yes, Aunt Hermy. And we went on a field trip!"

"Really? Where did you go?"

Lily began a long and rambling narration of her class trip to an animal farm. Ginny grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her closer, so that Ginny could whisper in her friend's ear. "What are you doing? Draco looks ready to kill."

"I'm just curious," Hermione said in an innocent tone, not fooling Ginny for a minute. "I thought Ralph would like to hear about how fun school can be."

"Don't you remember? You and Draco were-"

"Hermione," Draco said coldly, interrupting Ginny. "May I speak to you for a moment?"

Hermione turned to him and scowled. "Right now?"

"Right now," Draco confirmed with barely controlled fury. He gripped her arm and pulled her off her seat. "Inside."

Matching his glare, Hermione shook his hand off her arm and preceded him into the house. She whirled around. "What?"

"You know perfectly well what. You were brainwashing Ralph into making him think he wanted to go to school."

"Making him _think _it's what he wants? No, I'm pretty sure it_ is_ what he wants. You heard Lily, school is fun! Ralph would have a blast."

"That's beside the point at the moment. The point is, you deliberately tried to make him favour school over tutoring. You know he'll be heartbroken when we tell him he has to stay home."

"But he won't be staying home, he'll go to school."

"For the last time, he's staying home. He's an underage wizard! What happens if he loses control of his magic, as I'm sure he will?"

"Oh please, Malfoy," she snapped. "Muggleborns have been going to school before Hogwarts for ages, don't you think that if the Ministry had a problem with child wizards they'd inform Muggleborns that they have magic before the age of eleven? Fine, let's ask Ralph what he wants."

"You know he'll pick school, because he hasn't even heard the benefits of home-schooling. And besides, he's too young to know what's good for him."

"That's the first thing you've said that makes sense. He doesn't know what's good for him- we do. And once you see past all that nonsense about how purebloods- and Malfoys!- should be home-schooled, you'll see reason."

Draco scoffed. "Open your mind, Hermione! It's not nonsense. Merlin, we've been having this argument for months, haven't you heard anything I've been saying?"

"Of course I have! And after giving it due consideration, I still support having him educated in a school, with friends to play with."

A silence followed, as both thought the argument over. Hermione was replaying it in her head, all the while scowling at her husband. The scowl suddenly left her face, to be replaced by one of confusion. "Did you say we've been having this argument for months?"

"Yes."

"But we're not supposed to know that." She looked at Draco and saw the realization dawning on his face.

"I remember-" Draco frowned, seeming to have trouble expressing exactly what it was that he remembered.

Hermione decided to help him along. "Do you remember our first date?"

"At the Black Cat, yes. And the show before that."

"What about when you first told me you loved me?"

"We were at your flat, I suddenly felt the need to say it- and you almost didn't say it back," Draco said.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. I remember it too. I remember everything, our wedding, finding out about Ralph, when Ralph was born, even this argument about his education."

"That's what we were fighting about that night when we lost our memories."

"We've come full circle," Hermione said, piecing it all together. "That was the trigger, perhaps? We just had to remember the fight that we were meant to forget."

Draco stared at her for a moment. "That's _it_? A bit anticlimactic, isn't it? There was no pain, no burst of light…" he touched his head, looking slightly dazed. "I didn't even realize we remembered."

Hermione let out a laugh. "I didn't either." She smiled at him, and was suddenly overcome by a flood of emotion. Yes, she had fallen in love with Draco in a few short weeks, but it was nothing compared to the love that had built up for years. Tears pricked at her eyes as she looked at him, and, as if he knew what she was feeling, he crossed the room to her and enveloped her in a hug.

"Hermione," he murmured over and over, kissing her temple and burying his face in her hair.

She clung to him, her face pressed against his chest, tears streaming down her cheeks, wondering how she could have ever forgotten. After a few moments she reached up and pulled his face down to hers, meeting his lips in a searing kiss. "I love you," she whispered.

"Kissing!"

Draco and Hermione broke apart to stare at Ginny and Ralph, who were standing at the door.

Ginny looked at them apologetically. "He needs to potty."

"Why are you crying, Mummy?" Ralph asked worriedly, walking over to his parents.

Hermione hastily wiped her cheeks. "I'm crying because I'm very happy."

"Really? Can you do that?"

"Of course!" She lifted him up and kissed his cheek, savouring the feeling of having her little boy in her arms. "You're getting to be such a big boy, soon I won't be able to carry you."

Ralph giggled and bounced a bit in her arms. "That's because I eat a lot."

"You eat just right for a growing boy."

"Come on," Draco said, lifting Ralph out of Hermione's hold. "I'll take you to the loo." He cast Hermione a meaningful glance, and she knew she was supposed to be the one to break the news to the others.

With a sigh, she wiped the last traces of wetness from her face. "Ginny, something happened while we were fighting. That was the fight we had the night of your anniversary, right?" At Ginny's nod, Hermione nodded as well. "Well, it seemed to be the trigger, because we remember now, everything."

Ginny gasped. "_Everything_? Your memory is back?"

Hermione smiled, her eyes filling with tears again. "Yes. Everything. Every single, irritating, wonderful, frustrating and beautiful detail of our relationship."

***

It was over. As Hermione lay in bed later that night, Draco's arms securely wrapped around her and Ralph safely asleep, it occurred to Hermione that their marriage had gone through a difficult ordeal, but it was over. Everything could go back to normal.

"What are you thinking of?" Draco asked, seeing her smile. He gently traced her lips with his thumb, and her smile widened.

"Everything," she said, and he chuckled. "I was thinking of how much you and I have been through- both before our marriage, and after. If I had known, say, ten years ago, that I'd fall in love with you not once, but _twice_-" She broke off, and he laughed.

"I'd be speechless too," he said.

"It's amazing," Hermione murmured, bringing her hand to Draco's face, tracing his features. "I don't think it's been only twice, actually."

"It feels like three," Draco agreed, his eyes closing as he savoured Hermione's touch. "The first time, and then the second time when we had lost our memories- and again, when we remembered and I realized just how much I love you."

"Maybe it's not so much falling in love three times as it is _realizing_ it three times." She smiled again. "I don't think anyone was as worried as we were, you know? They all seemed so certain we would remember."

"I think they were just sure we would love each other." He opened his eyes and pressed a soft kiss on her lips. "Even if we never remembered. Their faith is touching, though exasperating."

"Narcissa was so sure. She didn't doubt it for an instant."

"Well, she knows a lot about love, being married to my father for years," Draco chuckled. The smile faded from his face as he remembered advice Lucius had given him just earlier that evening- advice coming from a man who had been married to Narcissa for years.

'She's right, you know,' Lucius had said. 'After being married for almost thirty years, I can say that our wives are always right. So swallow your pride before you're proven wrong and agree to whatever she wants.'

But Draco, having too much pride to swallow, opted for a compromise instead. Or assent in the form of a compromise, anyway.

"I've been thinking," he began, looking at Hermione solemnly, "I don't want anything to get in the way of our marriage again. I love you too much." Briefly, he wondered if he was overdoing the sweetness, but the smile on her face said otherwise. "So I was thinking of a compromise. Ralph can go to school-" he grinned at Hermione's excited gasp, "but if the teachers say he's spilling the secrets of the wizarding world, or if he endangers the other children with his magic, then we'll get a tutor."

"And then when he's older and can control his magic better, we'll try putting him in school again."

Draco pursed his lips, unprepared for that supplication. "All right," he conceded, not wanting to argue. He kissed her again, sealing the deal.

"Well, I'm glad we remember," Hermione said, a while later. "I promised myself I'd never forget what your father looked like as a penguin."

Draco laughed. "He didn't seem pleased when I reminded him about that earlier," he said, smirking.

-END-


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